


Link With Women in the Wild

by pinkbowbunny



Category: The Legend of Zelda: Breath of the Wild
Genre: Bottom Link, Dom Link, F/F, F/M, Harems, Link (Legend of Zelda) Needs a Hug, M/M, Multi, Other, Smut, Top Link
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2019-12-24
Updated: 2021-01-23
Packaged: 2021-02-25 21:22:35
Rating: Explicit
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 6
Words: 90,193
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/21942094
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/pinkbowbunny/pseuds/pinkbowbunny
Summary: Basically Link being a big funny bisexual ho across Hyrule for several years before finally regaining the strength he needs to go bust Zelda outta magic pig jail, and then they'll go be funny bisexual hos together. Attempts to poke fun at the game while also taking itself halfway serious at times. The story also adopts different details from canon to make some extra jokes and also to make the story interesting/different (and also bc this game is long AF and my memory is short AF so DAMN I just plain FORGOT sometimes OKAY, one or two things I even changed on purpose!), and also something something other Ghost-Heroes pop in sometimes to share an Opinion and then go be dead again, so consider it AU, but for the most part it's more like canon than not. Link/A handful of lady-NPCs and Link/Sidon so far, and god willing if I ever finish it will also be Link/Paya, Link/Zelda, older!Riju/Zelda/Link and Sidon/Link/Zelda.Shameless smut tries and fails to have a plot bye forever
Relationships: LOL now that I got this fic more figured out haha... XD;;, Link (Legend of Zelda)/Multiple Characters, Link/A lot of random characters eventually tbh lol..., Link/Celessa, Link/Loone, Link/Paya, Link/Rhondson, Link/Zelda, Link/Zelda/Riju (older obvs...), Sidon/Link, Sidon/Link/Zelda, Starting off with Link/Celessa, eveeeentually...
Comments: 15
Kudos: 61





	1. Courageous Beauty Celessa

It was a difficult, dangerous world out there...

And once he remembered her... Realized how long she had been holding all these evils at bay... He understood, no matter how strong he got over his travels, and no matter how weak Zelda had come to believe she was, Link knew... She was the strongest person in the entire kingdom, truly. She had sacrificed so much... He had to save her, someday...

Worrying about what she was still putting herself through to keep that horrible demon at bay was just a distraction though, and with how many things there were out there now trying to kill him, he could only do his princess a disservice by worrying about it. After all, he couldn't help her if he was dead. And he had to rest sometimes or he would die just as surely as he would by the hands of an enemy. He might be a rather extraordinary hylian apparently blessed by the goddesses, but he was still a mortal at the end of every day, and he needed to eat and rest or he wouldn't be able to keep going. He never dallied longer than he needed to for the most part of course, but he enjoyed his meals, and if he needed a rest to fortify himself, he took as long as rest as he safely could.

He knew Zelda would understand. The fact of the matter simply was that she had held off the demons for this long already, and banishing them would take him years too. Several years at least. Years and years. The beauty of the world helped distract him sometimes. But the sadness of it distracted him at times too. Oh how the years went by...

He met so many people along the way. People that reminded him of people he knew before. And completely new characters too. New, but who were still so affected by the world of the past. One such woman, a brave lady he met passing along the path to Fort Hateno...

His heart had been feeling heavier lately, walking through the graveyards of Guardians along the path to Fort Hateno. It reminded him of his fallen friends who stood and fought there with him so long ago... Every step a reminder...

A young man at the entrance of the Fort had told him he was there to pay his respects to those that fought there before, saying how he owed his very life to them for it. Link listened to him patiently and then moved on, stopping just a slight ways up to visit the house up there, where a strangely defensive doctor showed him where to find another shrine.

After camping for the night, Link awoke the next morning and moved on. Nothing seemed out of the ordinary until several hours down the path when he came across her, making her way towards the Fort. Link would soon learn she was on a pilgrimige to hopefully someday visit Mount Lanayru, but first he was saving her butt from a few fiesty moblins had decided to try and gang up and ambush her with clubs. He swiftly slayed them all with some rusty swords he didn't mind busting over their heads.

She was grateful for his help, and as way of thanks she offered to make him some meaty rice balls for dinner, which she claimed were her specialty. It sounded good so he sat down to sup with her, and she started to tell him about her desire to someday visit the spring on top of Mount Lanayru. He of course remembered Zelda right away when he heard that, that being the same sacred spot that Zelda was meant to acsend to. But then listening to her further, he began to realize that this was no accident. She was in fact retracing Zelda's steps and visiting the sites where Princess Zelda had once visited before, paying respect to her journey and all those who came before. Hers was a noble and considerate quest.

But then, Zelda had been given the best protection any lady in the land could be given. This courageous young woman was traveling by herself to pay her respects to Zelda, in a world dangerous enough to put a champion on his back if he wasn't careful. She impressed Link. He couldn't help but want to know more about her, even though he knew he didn't have the time to pursue her... He wanted to anyways...

He told himself he was just making sure she made it to the next settlement okay. She'd made it this far through life on her own of course and she pointed that out herself. But she also said she didn't mind either his protection or his company for a few days either. Especially not after the shy boy finally started speaking up back and told her he'd actually visited the top of Mount Lanayru that she'd been hoping to see himself, recently in fact... And had pictures, if she wanted to see...

He didn't normally show these things to just anyone he met along the road, but... Her eyes were so beautiful... So bright and green, like Zelda's, whom both of them admired... Her name and her eyes, both of them were so lovely. Both of them reminded him of stars...

"Celessa... Promise you won't tell anyone about these pictures...?"

She shook her head. "Of course not~! I mean I'm going to visit the spring myself too someday after all...?"

He nodded bashfully, slowly handing her the device to see for herself... "Yeah, but... You probably won't ever see it quite like this..."

She gasped deeply, as he expected, at the sight of the two contrasting dragons he had taken pictures of. Well, technically it was one dragon, but two radically different versions of it. In one, more a monster than the nature spirit it truly was deep down, instead currently covered and possessed by Malice. In the second, purified and free from the evil, smiling dragon maw breathing luck and beauty down over the fountain and the goddess statue, glowing with luminous life anew. Finally, after the dragon had left the fountain, he took one last photo of the fountain as it now stood waiting for her.

"I would never have believed this without these pictures to prove it... Goddesses look at the detail, it's not a sketch, this is the image of the real dragon and fountain... This is so incredibly amazing!" She sighed and reluctantly handed the slate back over to him. "Thank you so much for sharing that with me... And for helping that poor dragon! You're just absolutely astounding, you... You're like one of the champions of legend, really! Your deeds aren't just amazing, though. You've really helped everyone around you with your bravery by freeing that dragon..."

He blushed, scratching where he wished some stubble would finally grow in... "You're really brave too. Out here traveling by yourself. I can respect that. My own journey will take me a few more years yet I'm sure, and I'll spend most of it alone too... I hope someday you won't be so lonely though..."

She peered at him strangely then. "...You're the one who looks kind of lonely right now. No offense, but it's true..."

He didn't take offense. It WAS true.

She crept a little closer to him then. Biting her lip, looking shy... "I guess I've been a little lonely too, here and there... I left home because all the guys there were jerks. The legends I grew up with always inspired me more than the thought of staying home and being a wife for one of them. And I've since decided anyways, talking to my fellow female travelers, that I probably don't want to settle down with a husband for good someday anyways... Plenty of women nowadays do it... It's not like you can always find a priest in this world even if you do find someone you love enough to stay with forever, right? So why not just love who you want to love and let both move on afterwards...? What I'm saying, Link... Well, do you kind of get what I'm saying...? I'm saying we're here tonight... If we see each other again later, that's great, but if not... Why let this night go by and spend every night after wondering what could have been, if just for this night...?"

She blushed suddenly and insisted, "It's not something I do often of course... Not at all! It's only happened a couple other times before, and I know we're kind of out here more or less in the open... But there hasn't been any monsters around for a while, none that we can see right now anyways, pretty sure we're safe for a while... What do you think, Link...?"

He's thinking... That he really hopes Zelda understands. He needs a rest like this as much as any food or drink or sleep he's gotten along the way. Celessa's green eyes are like stars... Blue eyes are fine, but goddesses green ones were something else...

He leans in, staring silently down towards her lips. They both close their eyes, and kiss...

That small token of warmth is soon exchanged for a more heated kiss. Lips for tongues. Clothes cast aside, their bodies make the missing heat together between them...

It's cold though... The kisses aren't enough... He buries his face in her neck, kissing her down to her breasts, embracing her chest, nuzzling her with his cheek... Then moving down once more, between her legs...

She shudders, wraps those shy shaking legs around his shoulder and back as he kisses her there a few times, gently at first... Then his tongue takes her sex in a deep kiss, same as he did for her lips and mouth. Right away, she almost starts to cry out, shocked by how good it feels, but of course she quickly clamps her hand down over her mouth, not wanting to attract any undue attention. Not wanting this to end a second sooner than it has to...

Link's a good cook. He had to be able to appeal to the tastes of a princess, after all. But he's eaten some not so great survival food before too. This is like something in between... The taste isn't really 'tasty', but the sounds she's making while trying not to make sounds, the writhing of her hips against his face... He's savoring that. Even if it's not exactly as yummy as her meaty rice balls, he's just as reluctant to end this taste-test himself...

She covers her mouth with her palm, huffing against the palm, whispering in puffed breaths, "Ah... Haa... S-So good... You're like a champion at this too, ooooh goddesses, yeeeesss... I can't wait to do this for you too, aah~!"

An irresistable promise... With that in mind, he dove further between her folds, wrapping her legs around his own neck for her. Moaning and groaning in response, she pushed down on his back with her toes, one of her hands leaving her mouth and winding into Link's golden hair... "Uhn, goddesses, yes, please--Oh please...!"

She pulled him in and held him tight, grinding against him, panting, heart pounding so hard he could feel the beat in her blood, rushing through her sex. His own pulse pounding with the promise of what was soon to come for him too, but also enjoying the responses he'd gotten out of her, Link waited, still licking at that special spot that was still making her gasp and twitch and now, eventually start to sigh... Leaning back against the grass, legs falling down on each side of her. "Oh gods... Goddesses...! S-So good...!"

Link waited patiently for her to catch her breath... He didn't have to wait too long. Even as she was stiil panting, her eyes were staring at him, full of lust... Specifically, staring at the bulge he now had standing out in front of his pants...

She crawled into her hands and knees, advancing on him as he backed up against a nearby tree, propping himself against the bark while she situated herself down in front of him. "That was amazing, Link... I want to show you I can be amazing too..."

He already believed her, but by no means was he about to say no to the demonstration... Diving down as quick as a slash of his sword she loosened the band of his tights, tugging them down and kneeling before his second most heroic master sword... 

Okay, that was a silly thought, but... The way it stood up for attention so soon after being released sure made Celessa want to master it... Goddesses knew she would certainly try her best too, after the heroic performance he'd just given her.

Not that her simply wrapping those beautiful shapely lips around his cock didn't make him want to cum on the spot of course, since it had been far, far too long since the last time anything remotely close to this had happened to him, and Mipha's healing massages were, well... Still very stimulating, but not quite like THIS...

Then she started to go down... His hands were very politely wound into the grass by his sides already. Now he could bear no more to look at what she was doing to him, only feel it, so he let his head fall gently back against the grass under him too. The night sky filled his half-lidded eyes, and he gasped in the crisp night air as she filled his core with heat and energy, licking up and down the top of his cock while her hand held him at the base, keeping him heated down there while her hot wet mouth pleasured him immensely up top... Hot mouth, brief cold air, then hot again...

Briefly he would glance up to look at her prettiness, her lovely green eyes were closed in shyness, but her pretty bun of a hair was interestesting to ponder... But then, without warning, with her free hand she reached up and tugged her hair loose, letting the strands flow like a fall... And for some reason, that simple action did something unexpected to Link, because for that brief moment, she looked like someone else... Not Zelda, although they had very similar eyes, her hair was different--But then? Was it...? Had Zelda always had blonde hair, didn't she have brown hair too, and red... Once... ...?

His head swam, and she ducked her own head down, making him cry out and become lost in a sudden and unexpected sea of strange unexplainable thoughts accompanying the deluge of pleasure. She looked like Zelda alright, but, a different Zelda. And also she looked like a lot of other girls. But how could that be possible, he'd never really done anything like this with a woman before, not this serious--Right? Or...?

His eyes widened and rolled back towards his mind, his vision swimming in the stars. For a moment both beyond himself and closer than ever to himself, what looked like a hundred versions of himself among the stars answered that she did indeed remind them of lovers past, and he nearly blacked out, him, a man who traveled the world and had seen its behemoths, for a moment only but still a moment at least, he blacked out, unable to process the grandness of what he was seeing, or why he was seeing it...

Instead he focused on the stars around him, or tried to anyways. It was more like he was flying up and gliding through them, and then gently floating back down to Hyrule... Where there Celessa waited for him, smiling and wiping her mouth with the back of her hand, knowingly expecting the praise she was sure to come in her sparkling eyes, glowing in the dark with the dim firelight. She also mentioned, "You know, last time I did this for a guy, I spit it out but, well... This feels more special, and I think yours tastes better, so..." She gulped, and the simple motion almost made him cum again...

He never spoke much more often than he had to, but he always felt compelled to tell the truth for the most part, so he admitted to her fairly, "You just made me see stars..."

She accepted this with a happy laugh and kissed his chest a few times, then settled against him for warmth and a nap. In the early morning they gathered their clothes back on, and set out again...

Though before they parted ways, Celessa let him know, "You were amazing... I'm really grateful we shared that memory together. I just wanted you to know that. And hey, I'm sure you'll meet another amazing girl out there or maybe a few by the time I get to see my mountain, but if we ever meet up again after that... If we do meet up again and you're still not attached to anyone somehow... I'll so be willing to do this again, just saying!" Celessa blushed deeply, despite the crisp morning air, apparently wanting something more from her hearty meaty hero that she hadn't quite gotten, but... Oh well, c'est la vie...

Link just nodded shyly, and thanked her too, letting her know fairly, "I can never say what the future might have in store for either or any of us, but of course I hope only for the best. I wish you well on your journey, I hope the sights amaze you and you are kept safe by the fates. Farewell Celessa. May we somehow meet again, both in good health still."

It was a little more of a mouthful than his usual partings, but he felt like he owed it to her after sharing more than a mouthful between them last night too... And the way it made her blush and grin with pride let him know it was worth the breath to say it. He gave her a quick kiss on the forehead in parting, getting one last look at those sparkling eyes before they went opposite ways again.

Anyways. Onto the next adventure...

OoOoOoOoOoOoOoOoO


	2. Silly Scholar Loone

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> UGH????? I wrote like 3/4's of this but the ending was just stupid hard for me to get the FOOK out????? IDEFK, and I can't care anymore bc if I keep caring about making it extra perfect and giving it that extra OOMPH instead of just being GOOD ENOUGH it'll never get done and I'm ready to just pick a new girl now! XD;; But Loone, you were fun... FOR THE MOST PART. XD;;;;;;; 
> 
> And please, if you enjoyed her chapter too, leave a comment and/or kudo! ^^ Think I miiiiiight maaaaaaybe do Sidon's chapter next... that or Rhondson. IDK. Tell me what you guys think/prefer~

The last few weeks had been a strange mix of mostly eventful but also fun and leisurely for Link. Chasing the rumors he'd heard of a perfect heart-shaped lake, which was indeed as impressively symmetrical as the tales told (he even brought a cute little couple together there, aww~) he then began following a shrine lead from there on his sensor. Soon after the discovery of the Yah Rin shrine had then led him to Lurelin Village, where he spent a few days meeting the locals and interacting and buying from them. 

He stayed away from their little gambling den, even though he seemed to have pretty darn good luck at times, he knew better than to press that luck on trivial things. Best to just save it for when you really needed it, and spend your rupees on wiser things right from the get-go. So instead he spent his hard-earned money on the local fishermen, stocking up on plenty of nutritious fish and crab meat, and sweet fresh fruits.

While there he also found some pretty good treasure in the middle of the sea after following the advice of an old man who lived there, which replenished his rupees quite nicely after depleting most of them on food and supplies. Then he spoke to a man who humbly requested that someone get rid of the monsters infesting Aris Beach, to bring back the fishing spot for the villagers.

Link felt more than inclined to do it for them. They were friendly, hard-working people who deserved use of that beach and the fish there more than those damned monsters, and he had been enjoying the beauty and temperate weather of the beach and coastline after exploring cold snowy mountains and scorching hot deserts most of the year before that, and was in no hurry to leave it right away.

When he got to Aris Beach he found a fairly sizable encampment of monsters, not just one sea fortress but two twin fortresses standing together. No wonder the poor fishermen hadn't had any luck here recently. Well, it was a tough battle, but Link began fighting them at noon and managed to beat them all by sundown. Then, once it was safe for him, he slept at their fortress through the night until the next morning. Technically he could go back to the fishermen and let them know the good news right away... But he found he really liked sightseeing on the beach, and wanted to know what else lied up ahead all along the coast. 

So why not? Why not make every inch of this coast free of monsters so that the fishermen could fish any spot they liked? Link had always been the kind of guy to give more than 110%, so he decided to heck with it, and also, roaming along the coast was allowing him to pick up quite a lot of fish and crabs and fruit along the way. Why spend extra rupees back at the Village when he could save them for new armor later and gather his food like this? Smart Link, that's how smart adventurers do it~!

So he happily hopped along the bright and beautiful beach, enjoying life freely in between the weakling monsters he had to pick off here and there. None of them were anywhere near a challenge, just a bunch of thin-skinned Lizalfos and stubby-legged Moblins, a Chuchu here and there. Stuff he could've taken when he was a kid, quite frankly. But he knew they were a challenge for the peaceful villagers to deal with, so he went through the bore of picking them all off for their benefit, as a good deed.

There was also a few beat up, clearly non-operable Guardian remnants here and there along the beach, but Link didn't pay them mind, except to steal parts from them. His memory was still fuzzy but he was pretty sure he remembered being told in the past that the Guardians on this side of the coast had been taken care of, so he didn't think any of them should be any problem.

He was also distracted because his sheikah sensor was starting to tell him another shrine might be near. He saw another couple of Guardian remnants up ahead and decided to loot them first, then see if the shrine laid ahead of that, as he was suspecting...

The first Guardian was just a heap as he expected, but by the time he reached that first Guardian, he noticed something about the second one that lied up ahead... It actually seemed... Strangely, mostly intact? It seemed to have all its arms still there, didn't it? But it was very still, unmoving, it probably didn't work either right--

Wait. Link's footsteps suddenly stopped on the spot as he felt a rumble underneath them. The Guardian ahead shook, the head turned, and the eye lit up...

OH SHIT... ANCIENT ARROW, ANCIENT ARROW, WHERE WAS HIS ANCIENT ARROWS--?!

The laser was focusing on his head, CRAP, and he didn't have anything even remotely Guardian resistant on right now, he was in his swimwear, SHIT, COME ON YOU STUPID ANCIENT ARROW LOAD LOAD LOAD--!

Seconds before the thing was about to blow a hole through his pretty blonde head, he finally managed to get the arrow into place, aimed it right into the middle of that eye, and let it fly. He knocked the entire thing right over and it exploded, sending parts all over the beach, and a few into the sea...

Fuck, please, goddesses, never let it get that close again... He really thought he was gonna meet his makers for a minute there...

After collecting the parts that had gone everywhere, he continued along the beach up front, to where the sensor was now strongly pointing him to go. It didn't take long to find what he was looking for, a space to put an orb to reveal a shrine, and nearby, sitting under a cliff and shielded from the constant rain in these parts, a ruby-haired woman sat among some matching red flowers, leaning on and tenderly stroking the orb that obviously was the key to the nearby shrine...

"So smooth and ancient..." She cooed from afar, and as Link came closer, he realized she wasn't talking to him then, or now either. She was talking to the orb that she was fawning over... "Your skin is so smooth and gorgeous, my little Roscoe..."

Only when he was standing right over her, looking down at her in disbelief if only to get her attention, did she finally sort-of acknowledge him, though only by addressing the orb that she was apparently enamored with, mentioning to it, "Hm? Someone's watching us?" She then proceeded to giggle, "Oh my sweet Roscoe~! You're so shy, aren't you? YES, YOU ARE!" Oh man... Was this girl... All there? She was pretty cute overall, except for those way-too-dreamy-looking blue eyes, those looked halfway stuck in the world of dreams, and of course, being cute didn't keep people from going crazy... Especially ones that had apparently been living away from people and surrounded by monsters and dangerous foes...

Link was more worried about her than anything though, so he asked her, "Hey... Did you know there was, like... An entire operating Guardian just down the beach from where you were? That thing could have killed you if it saw you here. You're kinda surrounded by enemies, actually...? Good thing I got rid of it before it saw you here..."

She seemed unconcerned, and barely addressed his query in a slightly annoyed tone, "You mean that amazing gorgeous Guardian I was admiring from afar from my special hiding place that I know is safe before you destroyed it forever? Yes, good thing you destroyed that precious priceless irreplaceable piece of art and history so I can never look upon it's loveliness again. THANKS."

He barely had time to blink at that, but she quickly went back to cooing over her orb, "I mean it WAS impressive how he managed to hit it right in the eye at the last second like that, but I'm sure it was just a lucky fluke, and now that beautiful Guardian is gone forever! Sigh..."

Well. What a jerk he was for not dying instead, he guessed. Rolling his eyes, he inquired a bit sarcastically, "I guess you won't be letting me have that orb in gratitude for saving you from that Guardian, then...?" He really doubted that would work but how else to peaceably get the piece from her?

She was obviously entirely unconvinced, as she proceeded to address the orb, 'Roscoe', once more. "Hm? What's that? You think the stranger here looks like he's after something? You think he wants YOU? GASP! My beaming beauty? My darling?! Is he after you?!" She then glared pointedly at Link, "Well don't you worry, my sweet Roscoe! I would never, EVER let you go! I'm head over heels for my special friend who's been around since ancient times! You're so special and ancient, Roscoe! YES, YOU ARE!!"

Link tilted his head at her, "Doesn't it hurt to hug that hard thing so much--?" Maybe that's why her eyes looked so droopy and dreamy, if she was using that thing as a pillow all the time, she couldn't be getting very good sleep...

But she continued to ignore him, going on with the orange orb, "Sorry my sweet Roscoe, I fibbed a little... The truth is..." Hmm? What was this now? 

Her eyes suddenly went wide, and she cried out loud, sparkling like a great fairy blessed her, "I WANNA SEE GUARDIANS! Flying ones! Small ones! Ones that walk around! I wanna see all the guardians in all the world!! And not the ones that are rusted away, I wanna see the fresh and lively Guardians! If I ever got to see all of them... Only then could I bear the thought of leaving my special friend. Oh but don't you worry~! Getting near a real live Guardian is too dangerous for me or anyone else that didn't get a seriously lucky break, that's for sure!"

Link began pulling out the sheikah slate and explaining, "Actually it wasn't just luck, that one just caught me off guard... I've beaten those other kinds of Guardians before too, all three of them--"

She clearly didn't believe him at first, and carried on to her dear Roscoe, "I'm afraid seeing Guardians like that is just a dream within a dream for me..."

Link rolled his eyes and huffed. He had plenty of patience for people but he didn't like being outright ignored. So he laid down right in front of her, propping himself up on the orb he planned to be taking soon too and showing her the slate, where he had brought up the pictures of the guardians he'd defeated. "See? A Flying one, a Small one, and a Walking Guardian. All three here! And its not that I don't respect either the technology or the history, you know. I figured I ought to preserve their image before I destroyed them, but there -was- no other choice but to destroy them. I can't just let these things keep roaming around and hurting people, after all, can I?"

She was still a little reluctant to be snapped out of her daydream with the orb at first, stubbornly insisting, "Don't worry Roscoe, I would NEVER part with you, it's not like he can really show me a--" But then she bothered to actually LOOK... And then she gasped sharply, "That image... That's a Flying Guardian!" She then let out a rather odd little moan there. "Oh, wow~! I feel alive with terror just from gazing at its beautiful form! It looks so real there!!"

He then flipped to the next image, and she cooed all over again, "Aww! A Small Guardian! It looks so vicious for it's tiny size! Adorable!!"

And well, its not like she hadn't been able to look at the one she'd been sitting just down the beach from plenty long enough, but she still moaned in pleasure at the sight of the third image, "I can't believe it! A walking Guardian! Nothing could be more dangerous! What an exhiliratingly scary sight! Phew... What a joy."

Since she was seemingly satisfied he went to put the slate away, only for her to show her curiosity wasn't quite slate after all, she proceeded to bat her lazy eyes at him, apparently attempting to use feminine charm to sway him. "Hey, you! Give me that box, OK?! I wanna look at those images every single day!"

He quickly put the slate in it's pouch and sealed it up. "Sorry, can't do that. There's only one like it and I need it." Now that he'd gotten used to taking pictures with the thing he was kind of addicted to finding the best shots to take, too...

She sighed, dejected like a lover for a second or two, but she seemed reasonable enough to accept it at least, to his relief. "You can't? I see, how unfortunate... I can't blame you though! I guess I'll just have to burn those images into my mind instead..."

Link batted his eyes right back at her then, "So... Can I have that orb?"

He meant it mostly as a joke, but him batting his eyes at her apparently distracted her for a moment, and she found herself staring back into his eyes. He quickly stopped, blushing a bit as she responded distractedly while staring at him, "Hm...? Oh, you mean Roscoe? Hehe, sure, that weird sphere thing is all yours now! Really, I'm over it now! Yeah... I'm all about Guardians now~ If I close my eyes I can see them in my imagination! It's glorious~!"

Well, he was happy that she was happy now, apparently, somehow. Man, cute girls were always into such weird things though. But at the same time, like Celessa, the strange girl's bravery surrounded by all this danger impressed him, and although her love for the ancient technology was a little stronger than Link was used to in most people, well, that's something she shared with Zelda just like Celessa too, so her strangeness overall just endeared her to him.

But, thinking that was that with her, he picked up the orb that she had given him permission to take and placed it at the center of the nearby pedestal. Immediately reddish-orange glow turned electric blue, and after a rumbling of the nearby earth rising, a shrine had presented itself.

Going inside of the shrine, he found himself facing off against another small guardian warrior inside. It was a tough little guy like all the rest, but he smacked it around with his sword enough times and eventually it stopped trying to zap him and broke down and exploded. After collecting everything he needed, he exited the shrine once more... Only to find the girl from before standing right next to the shrine, waiting for him there. 

He blinked in surprise, "Oh--Hey?" 

She blinked back at him. Her eyes seemed to be sparkling now, a little wider, more awake, but still just as dreamy-looking... "Hey... I hope you don't mind, but... I kinda actually followed you in there just now... I saw you fight that small guardian, all by yourself like that... Don't worry, I didn't get too close, and I left after it was over, but... Oh wow..."

He blinked back at her, blushing from her blushing but also a little miffed at her, "I DO mind. You shouldn't have followed me in there. That could have been really dangerous!"

"I know...!" She moaned back, grasping the front of his tunic. "But I LOVE dangerous stuff! Oh! Please, please, PLEASE tell me you can stay for just a little while before you go, I wanna hear about all the amazing dangerous stuff you've done! After seeing you take on that second Guardian, I totally believe you now! You're amazing! What's your name?? Please say you won't go too soon--!"

Link looked around. It had gotten dark again since exiting the shrine, and not only that, but it had started to rain. The beach was lovely during the day but he was in no hurry to take a stroll in the sand through a downpour in the dark... Resting next to some body heat during the night sounded much better. And the already lit cooking pot the girl had nearby looked awfully inviting too, Link's empty stomach reminded him...

"Alright, alright, I'll stay here tonight--" He relented, to her immediate delight. "And my name is Link, by the way. What about you?"

She straightened up, looking uncommonly serious for a few seconds. "Yes! My name is Loone! That's L-O-O-N-E, with an E at the end there, but it's NOT pronounced 'Loon-ee'! You pronounce the E but it's soft! It's not quite like "Luna", but you don't just leave off at "Loon", either, the 'E' is definitely there! It's pronounced LOONE."

It really, really seriously sounded more or less like she was just saying "Loon" to him, he couldn't hear the difference at all, even though his ears were really sensitive. So he tried repeating it after her... Basically he just pronounced it the same as 'Loon', he just said it with the knowledge in mind that it was supposed to be spelled as 'Loone'... And her eyes immediately lit up, deeply impressed with him.

"Hey! You got it right! You're one of like... The ONLY guys who has ever gotten my name just right on the first try! That's amazing! You're smart AND strong enough to fight Guardians?? Hehe, hey, what else can you do, huh~??"

She was batting her eyes back at him again... But he wasn't quite as distracted by that right away. Instead, his eyes kept flicking back to her cooking pot, licking at the corner of his lips. "Well, I can cook...?"

"Huh?" She glanced back at what he was looking at. "Oh... Right! Of course! Anyone would be hungry after fighting and beating a real live Guardian! Please, sit down and lets eat something together! And while we can cook you can tell me about every other time you've beaten a Guardian!!!" Also she was pretty sure she'd heard something about the way to a man's heart being through his stomach once, and was pretty curious to see how the hero could cook, herself.

"Sure. Well there was plenty of them over by..." He began recounting to her, although he was more focused on the food he was making. He'd actually been getting kind of sick of the fish and crab after a few weeks of it and he was pretty sure that's probably mostly what she ate camping around here too, but luckily he had come across a boar, a doe, and a handful of storks along the way too, and so in addition to the crab and fish he also threw in some of the meat and poultry, as well as some honey, butter, rock salt and fresh herbs and spices for flavor, and ended up making an enormous spicy-salty-sweet-glazed gourmet surf and turf platter for the two of them to share.

Her eyes were sparkling by the end of his tale, and her mouth was watering from the sight of the food he'd made. "Whaaaat! I can't believe how good this all looks~! Adventurers like you find some tasty stuff out there, but you handle your way around the pot real good too! I can't BELIEVE you're really that smart AND strong AND a good cook too! Is there anything you can't do, huh...?"

He answered honestly to that, eyes fixed on the prime meat, "I can't go another second without eating this..."

For a few moments he tore into his meat meal, forgetting everything around him. He normally had better table manners of course, but he hadn't eaten all day, had been hunting and fighting his calories away, had almost died, had to fight again after finally finding that shrine, and now he was properly famished. She got kinda quiet after that though, and after staving off the hunger pangs he quickly amended, "Sorry. Not trying to be a bad conversationalist. I was just really starving there. It's been a hard day. How about you tell me about yourself though? Like what you're doing all the way out here, where you got that Roscoe, and why he meant so much to you...?"

She perked up a bit at that and nodded in acceptance of his suggestion, and went on to explain in turn, "Roscoe originally belonged to my professor. He was studying ancient technology and I wanted to learn from him. I've always been fascinated by ancient technology... But in all honestly, I was always fascinated by my professor, too... Even though he was quite a bit older than me, and I knew it could never be, I couldn't help but fall in love with him. I kept it to myself, even until the day he died. Oh dear Professor Roscoe, how I miss him. How I wish I could have told him my true feelings..."

She sighed sadly at first, but quickly tore into another piece of perfectly cooked boar chop. "But! Dear Professor Roscoe was always married to his work first and foremost! I always respected that about him! He was even more in love with the Guardians and the ancient tech than me!" Oh... Man, that was hard to imagine... She went on regardless of his funny looks about it though, "I just know his heart would be made full to see what we discovered here today with your help! So, thank you, Link... For your help with that, and the amazing food! Wow, you really CAN cook!"

He smiled back proudly, "Thanks. I try to make it good for survival food. My mother taught me to cook when I was little, before she left this world. Making anything that isn't delicious would be an insult to her memory, I think. As a Gerudo, there's two things my mother made sure to teach me as a boy before she left this world. The first was to fight, and the next was to cook. And well, I'm still around today thanks to those lessons, so, thanks mom..." He mentioned, rubbing the Gerudo armbands on his wrists, which had been there since he was a much smaller child. How baggy they were back then... 

Loone blinked back at him in surprise at that, "Eh? Your mother was a Gerudo too?? So is mine!" She mentioned needlessly, pointing to her dark ruby-red hair. "My father raised me most of the time though. I wasn't a warrior-type like the other Gerudo girls, and I was never gonna get as tall as them. I preferred to become a Scholar instead, so I learned with my father until I met Professor Roscoe, and I'd been following him around since then. I was pretty down for a while after his passing... But I guess I should go back and check on my father and mother soon, too. They're probably wondering how I've been..."

He nodded quietly, sadness washing over him for a second. He couldn't bear to think upon that too much though, and banished it from his brain so he could answer unburdened, for the most part, "Yeah... You should go visit them soon. Don't want to lose the chance..." Like he had, a long, long time ago...

She seemed strangely reluctant, though... "Yeah... You're right... I should, and I will, it's just.. I wish I didn't feel like I'm going back to them with little to nothing to show for it. I mean, I solved the mystery of Professor Roscoe's orb, that's amazing of course, and the knowledge is worth so much, but... I can't lie, I just gotta say...! After meeting someone as amazing as you, Link, I don't want to walk away with just a memory burned into my imagination... I don't want that heavy old orb back either, it looks like it's stuck where it is now anyways, but... I want... I want something from you, Link... Something that can't just be given or taken away..."

Link looked up from the drumstick he was about to bite into then, looking surprised. Something about this seemed to demand more attention to be paid now... 

"Something... Like what...?" He inquired, blinking in surprise at her. At how she was looking at him, with those dreamy blue eyes focused on his... 

She bit her lip, looking down, "L-Look, of course I'll respect if you're more the kind of guy that prefers to wait for marriage, and only do it with one person ever, the person you plan to marry... I know a lot of Gerudo women like our mothers tend to marry, more than not anyway, and so do many Hylians, but its hardly a requirement in a world like the one we're living in anymore either, right...? And well, even though I'm a very -passionate- person, its only towards what really inspires me... And I just know... No one else is every going to inspire my imagination like the way you have... So, please, would you... Would you let me try to make a child with you?!" 

Whoops. She blurted out a little too quickly, and at Link's incredibly wide eyes and shocked face, she figured she should quickly follow up with a proper explanation, so... "I mean--Sorry! I didn't mean to be so blunt, but well... I'm a scholar, I have no desire to be wife and raise a whole entire family, that sounds exhausting, but now that I've reached this milestone of completing my old professor's life's work, I should find something else to do with my life... And raising a single protege sounds like a worthwhile endeavor at this age of my life! Plus I figure you seem like the kind of guy that keeps moving on, which I'm fine with... If you ever meet up with us again we'd meet you with open arms for a visit of course, but I'd understand if you had to keep moving... Basically, if you trust me, I trust you? Of course if this request is too forward of me, I'd understand that too, but, well... I'm just saying, if you want that, Link my hero, that's what I want of you!"

Wow. That was something else. He blinked at her, trying to process that. He wasn't going go treat her like she was crazy for that, even though on the surface it might seem a little crazy. Asking to make a baby with a guy you just met the same day and who planned to keep moving on his journey into the world and might never see you again, on the surface, seemed a little looney. But, in a world like the one they were living in... Eh. Not so much. People were far less judgmental of females in a dimension ruled by goddesses in the first place, and people were certainly less judgmental of single parents when there were many reasons why a parent might be missing in an apocalyptic world. Male or female, someone going through the sacrifice of raising and protecting a child in this dangerous world was to be honored, not shamed. Likewise, a woman asking such a thing was never seen as especially immoral, and in the current climate it was viewed especially as a great honor and a huge favor more often than not.

But still, that was true of him as well, and that was a pretty big request for how little time they'd known each other... People made all kinds of requests from him all the time, he was happy to oblige and help out as most he could, most of the time too, but... This was a pretty -majorly- big request... Also, he wasn't sure he wanted to just have a child he couldn't help raise. He would want to protect his own children, or at the very least know them so he could teach them to protect themselves as well as he and they both could manage, he was sure... So he wasn't totally convinced he could agree to this, at first... 

And anyways, embarrassing as it was to admit, he -had- to admit to her, "I'm pretty exhausted after everything, the fight and the meal... I'm not sure I could even be any regular fun for you right away, and though I might be okay with having some fun with you, I'm not sure about anything more serious than that... Either way though, I'd need to get at least a nap in before I could have the energy to do anything else for anybody, even something fun... Can you maybe give me an hour or two to sleep by the fire, and think about what you've asked...?"

She pursed her lips in slight disappointment for a moment, but quickly smiled past it and nodded, "Well... Okay! That's understandable... And hey, while you sleep, I can cuddle with you, right? I'm so used to cuddling with Roscoe when I sleep and now I'll have to get used to not having anything to cuddle at night now..."

He nodded, and decided to stay silent and lay down and go to sleep already rather than asking her how comfortable it could possibly be to cuddle with a big round stone. No doubt from the way she sighed in contentment as she cuddled up next to his back, he could at least tell that he was more fun to snuggle up with than the orb...

Between her warm bosom on his back, the soft bed of sand beneath him, and the fire warming him in front, he had drifted off in no time at all... Drifted off into a dream, to his surprise. He didn't dream very often anymore... Didn't allow himself to sleep long or deep enough to dream most of the time when he had to keep constant watch for enemies. Also he felt kind of nervous and uncomfortable getting to sleep sometimes knowing he had apparently slept for over an entire hundred years... But he knew it was a dream because he saw his own body sleeping with Loone on the sand beneath him. Beyond, sitting by the shrine, was a near-exact copy of himself... Nearly, except for a few changes here and there. A slightly different shade of hair, more like a sunflower than his hay or straw-like locks. Deeper, bluer eyes, like the middle of the sea while his own eyes were blue like the sky... And a green tunic, while he was in his blue champion's tunic.

"Come, my son. Sit with me." The visage told him and he obeyed, walking on weightless feet over to the shrine and sitting next to him in the rain, the wetness of which he could not currently feel... "I can feel you are conflicted... Care to converse, young one?"

Eh, why not. This life could easily get weirder than this, best not to tempt it to... "Well, if you're here, it must be to give me advice, right? What should I do here...?"

The specter shrugged. "If you didn't want to do it at all you could easily refuse. You didn't because part of you wants to indulge her request... Well, why is that?"

"...Because I'm an idiot male and we all want to do stupid irresponsible shit like this?"

His ghostly double snorted at that. "Now you're giving yourself too little credit. You're not the kind of guy who hits on whoever he can, whenever he can, and moves on without a thought afterwards. But your life as it is isn't exactly conducive to living a married life or that of a father, is it..."

"So then shouldn't I abstain?" The wilder blue Link insisted in confusion. "My parents were married... Wouldn't it dishonor them not to do the same...?" Despite other Hylians insisting otherwise, his father, a proud knight, had always expected Link to act as 'nobly' as possible...

"Would your parents also want you to live a loveless life, die without feeling as much pleasure and happiness as you can, and without leaving a legacy in this world? I was never able to pass on the lessons I learned in life to my own sons or daughters, and it haunted me that I wasn't able to watch my children grow or teach them what was important to me, not for a very long time after that anyways... So trust me when I say I understand why you feel you don't want to take the chance of never being able to be there for your own child, but..."

Looking back at the ghost, Link was shocked for a second to see that his form had become skeletal. "I waited for years upon years with my grief... The only thing that made it tolerable was the knowledge that I had a protege out there somewhere. That redemption was even -possible-. That there was someone out there who could carry on the fight against evil after I had fallen..."

Link reached over and lightly shook the skeleton shoulder. "Hey. Snap out of it, man. I gotta deal with enough skeletons when I'm awake, I don't need 'em in my dreams..."

The fallen hero shook his head and his true visage returned after a haze passed over him. He nodded to the other young man, "Thank you, my son... But don't you see? I married my Malon, but what good did it do when I couldn't stay with her. I couldn't because I would always have a duty to the princess and our lands before all else... But does that mean I never should have married her at all? I don't regret marrying her, or being with her, but I do regret leaving her with the heartache I no doubt did. And that heartache was left because I tried to promise her an entire life together... That's what I shouldn't have done, I now realize... But I also realize, in the much longer time that my spirit has now seen over many, many years... If I had never been with her at all, the hero's bloodline wouldn't have lived on to destroy the evil that I failed to quite contain in my life. A hero can be chosen from anywhere if the bloodline does die, but the fight against evil is stronger when we have this bond. And in turn, if my son's son too hadn't been with the handful of women he was with, you might have never been around now to fight the evil that now threatens you..."

The Link that now doubted if he was truly the Wildest one in their lifetimes asked hesitantly, "H-Handful...?"

The Hero of Time smiled sadly for that old boy, "He was madly in love with the Princess Midna... But in order to keep their lands safe, she had to keep them separate, and so she shattered the only hope of them ever meeting again... In the years after that, the Hero of Twilight was consoled in the hours of twilight for the loss of his true love by several women across the land... He eventually went back home and settled with a girl there, and had a family there, but he had a few other children he both did and didn't know about too... I don't judge him for this, and neither should you or anyone else, because you yourself did not come from his wife's bloodline. And neither did any of the heroes that were alive in your time that could have replaced you... However, none of those few that were alive then are now, and none of them had progeny. The last of the hero's bloodline lies with you... I came to warn you of this, but also to advise you... I would never have been unfaithful to my Malon of course, but if I knew then what I know now... I think I might have been with a few other women I loved too... You have many duties as the hero to the land and to the princess, but none of those is to live your life without expressing your emotions and feelings towards whoever makes your heart stir... I would have never betrayed my Malon, but aah... If I am to be honest, there is a certain beautiful Gerudo woman I wish I had pursued... Just saying, if you ever have the chance to be with a Gerudo, I can confirm they're more beautiful now than ever~"

Link smirked over at his ancestor, the spirit somehow mustering up a blush with no real blood in his cheeks. "People always speculate about the hero and the princess, but you obviously had a thing for redheads, didn't you..."

Yup, the Hero of Time's spirit was definitely blushing now. But he grinned back at the wild young version of him too, "Hah! Don't act like you don't!"

The new hero now blushed too, "Well then... I won't. Thank you for the advice... I feel sure of what I want to do now. Of what I must do... But I'll do my best to try and have fun doing it too, heh..."

"That's the spirit!" The spirit joked, making his descendant groan at the horrible pun. He chuckled at it for himself then sighed, "Don't worry about never getting to see your children, either... I can tell you're the kind of man who will definitely seek out a relationship with them once your work is done, if possible... So let that be incentive for you to work all that much harder and stronger!" With that final conclusion, his body began to slowly fade... "Well now... I won't be rude. I'll take my leave now... I had to wait a long time to ease my regrets from life, but thankfully Malon was very patient with me. She was waiting for me on the other side until I did what I had to do. Now I will return to her again. Just remember Hero... Don't do anything I wouldn't have done... But do everything you can that I would have!"

At that, the image faded away, and Link felt his spirit being drawn back into the darkness of his sleeping body, which soon stirred from that slumber as the winds blew a droplet of rain onto his cheek. The cliffs managed to keep them mostly shielded from the rains, but the fire from the cooking pot was getting a little low from the moisture in the air, so now most of the warmth he felt was from the body heat Loone was providing behind him...

He turned around, burrowing his blushing face into her warmth... "...Are you still awake, Loone...?"

She immediately stirred, bending down and kissing his brow sweetly. "Of course I am now, Link~ My strong handsome Guardian Slayer~ How could I sleep too long with someone as exciting as you lying next to me? I've just been watching you sleep mostly instead... Did you know your lips move when you're dreaming? Almost like you were talking to someone~ Not the girl of your dreams, I hope?" She pouted then, but quickly winked and giggled to show she was just teasing. 

He shook his head, answered almost honestly, "I was talking to myself... And, well... He thinks I shouldn't pass up the chance to be with a girl as pretty as you tonight... A-Also... I've decided... I'm going to fulfill your request, Loone. O-Or at least, you know, I'll try! As long as you wouldn't mind me visiting them whenever I can manage to find you guys again...?" That is, IF he ever did... No, no. He -definitely- would!

She was clearly not as troubled as he was, and beamed a big, bright smile at him, "Of course! I can't say where I'll settle but I won't be too far from here. Just going to find my mom and dad and stay with them a little while until I can either find another spot to live or build my own... But enough about that! Let's get to this already~!"

Well she was certainly eager. Link couldn't deny he was looking forward to it too. He was always up for a challenge, and this was something he had definitely never done before... He still didn't have time for a ton of experience, but after being with Celessa, and experiencing a rather stimulating deep-tissue massage in Gerudo town, he was feeling more confident about at least where this would potentially begin, even if he was still nervous about how she was requesting he finish it. 

Still, as the gentleman he was (most of the time anyways), he asked her as he began kissing her on the collar and neck, "Alright then, so, is there a certain way you want us to get to it...?"

She blinked at him, her eyes looking a little droopy again for a moment. "H-Huh...? What do you mean...?"

He straightened up and blinked owlishly down at her, "...What do you mean, what do I mean? How do you, you know... Prefer to play? What do you want me to do with your body while we make love, what makes you feel good...?" His cheeks were getting hot having to ask her all this, and he was starting to suspect...

She tilted her head and confirmed, blowing his mind in the process, "I don't know? I don't have a preference because I've never done it before. At all. With anyone."

Now Link's whole face was red. Each word made him redder. "...Y-You're a total virgin??" Wait, wait, that was an even bigger deal on top of an already big deal! He'd never been with a girl like that before... All the women who had ever hit on him or who he tried to flirt with or make a move at had almost always been at least a little older and more experienced, usually at least. Loone looked to be about his age (cough, cough...) more or (much) less, so he assumed she was about as experienced as he or the other women he'd been with were, especially since she had been so enamored with that orb, but... 

Well, it started to make sense even before she explained... "I'm a scholar, remember! Romantic pursuits aren't normally my thing. I guess the grief of losing my beloved teacher made me go a little ga-ga for that dumb orb for a while, but otherwise I'm usually studying really hard, not thinking about romance! Oooh, but then, maybe... I think maybe I've been studying too hard lately... Maybe my mind and my body have been telling me to check out for a vacation for a year, or a few... But as a scholar, relaxing and having fun just don't exactly come naturally to me, I mean hello, why else would I be dating an orb on a monster infested beach miles away from the nearest real male rather than dating a real Hylian? Besides the fact that 98% of them are cowards and/or total bores, of course... So, Mister Super Exciting Guardian Chasing Brave Adventurer, I guess I'll have to trust you to show me how -you- like to do things...?"

Link could be kind of dull, but when it really counted, he could turn as sharp as his blades pretty quick. Loone didn't seem to be totally sure what she wanted, but she was giving off plenty of clues. Even though he was a bit of a 'Shy Guy', and preferred to let the ladies take the lead, that just didn't seem to be what Loone liked to respond to. She was somehow just a little shyer than even him, and batted her eyes a lot at him from where he held her in his arms. Giving her a reassuring smile, he lowered her to the sand, sitting over her while he removed his top layer of clothing, exposing his chest. Then he shyly motioned for her next to follow his example, reaching over and feeling at the top buttons of her blouse, which she quickly began unbuttoning herself so that he could focus on himself. Specifically, his pants...

It wasn't long before they were both naked. The rain had lessened to a misty drizzle, but it was still cold enough to make them cling to each other as soon as their clothes were removed. Loone especially smoothed her hands over his muscled biceps more than once, prompting Link to hold her body close to his own bosom while he began to kiss her collar and down to her breasts...

She was already starting to moan and mewl from his mouth moving over her small soft mountain peaks... She was responsive, definitely -- It was getting much easier to believe she was really a virgin after all. But the thought was starting to excite him too... Even though it made him a little nervous to know she could be hurt more easily if he wasn't careful, he knew he always was plenty careful, and he was also starting to realize that the trade-off was that it was also that much easier to please her, and that she would definitely remember every little thing he made her feel... She was already squirming under him, trying to rock her body against him, feel just a bit of that cock she was so curious about, but he was determined to make sure she was more than ready for it first...

So first he moved his dominant left hand and fingers to her secret cavern, her juices waiting impatiently for him to delve in, stirring her insides by rocking his first two fingers into her body. Her breath immediately caught in her throat, and her cheeks went almost as ruby red as her pretty hair... Her sea blue eyes definitely wide and awake-looking now...

"Aahn... L-Link...!" She moaned, then whispered harshly, "Oh, goddesses, aahn... I like this, right now--I like what you're doing to me now...!"

He smirked against a breast, putting the pieces together for himself, he mentioned his findings aloud to the secretly shy scholar, "It's starting to seem, Loone... As though you would prefer to lie back, and let me take charge of giving you pleasure... But then, some girls prefer that the man lie down and let them take their pleasure from him... What way would you like it, Loone?"

She barely had to think about it at all, answering right away, "I want you to give it to me, Link..."

Admittedly, most of the time Link fantasized, it was about the reverse position for some reason, but he was in no way against this request. He already knew it was just as common for women to want to be protected and kept safe by a big strong man, even if knights in shining armor didn't technically exist anymore for the most part, it was reasonable for a lady to want a man to fulfill her needs in that way... And Link was just as inclined to comply, having no problem at all playing the part of the knight in shining armor, after all, since that was what he normally did. It just might be nice to have a change of pace someday too.

But for now, he aimed to please, and therefore his fingers were aiming for the spot deep inside of her that kept making her squeak and moan and roll her hips against his fingers and clamp down on them, especially when he sucked on her nipple and breast at the same time...

"OOH, YES, Liiink--! Oh, I--It feels AMAZING...!" She gasped, face getting redder. "I can tell... You really know what you're doing here, aah... So, I want you to know... I trust you with my body, Professor Link~" She moaned up at him, giving him a coy little wink with those once-again-dreamy eyes...

Well, he supposed if that was how she liked to play, he was fine with teaching her a thing or two... It actually kind of made sense in a weird way, he was older and wiser than even her professor, but he at least wasn't wrinkled up, so...

He smirked, getting a few ideas for some fun games to add to their play as well... "Loone... You don't really want to leave old Roscoe behind forever without having one last memory with him, right? What do you say... Want to let Professor Link bend you over that old ball and see who you remember then~?"

Her eyes immediately went wide again, and she blinked in surprise. "O-Oh...! W-Well, sure, i-if that's what Professor Link wants to do with me, heehee~..." A grin quickly made it's way across her mouth then... "I trust you, Professor Link... I know you'll teach me something special that I'll never forget~"

They made their way over to the pedestal and the orb... This was probably a bit cursed, but screw it, the gods had put him through too much hardship to expect him to always take ritual so seriously when they so constantly changed it anyways...

The cliffs didn't quite cover the orb but thankfully the rain had ebbed away again by then. It was still misty and a bit chilly, but of course, they planned to keep their skin close...

So, kneeling at the orb, Loone proceeded to bend and arch her body over it, exposing her backside to the hero, who himself knelt before her virgin body in reverence. It wasn't her youth that attracted him though, or the age difference between them, of course not... He just thought it was special, the fact that she never had anyone before, that he would be the first one to make her feel like this... That was special to him, so he wanted to make this extra special for her.

Therefore, he began by kneeling before her the same way she was kneeling before the orb, grasping both sides of her hips firmly, but not too tight, he held her buttocks in place while he began to lick between the folds of her womanhood, lubricating her and exciting her in advance, his pointy ears perking up and twitching at the delicious sounds of her shaky moans... Using his tongue like a sword, he thrust it into her sweet cavern, unexplored, he marked her, like a new map...

"Oooh...! P-Professor...! Liiiiink...!" She cried out, trying to keep her voice low, even if no one was around, she clamped one hand over her mouth and muffled the next words to the orb, which she had her other arm wrapped around, "Aah, s-sorry Roscoe...! I'll always, aaah... Remember our time together, but, mmm...! I'm so glad Professor Link came along...!"

With one last long lick and a light teasing smack to the behind, Link stood up on his knees behind her, pressing his less than sharpest sword to the entrance of her magical fountain, dripping as she was for him... Dripping and pushing back against him, too impatient to wait for him. Even if she was a virgin, she clearly had enough experience pleasing herself to know what she wanted from him...

He had to wonder aloud as he began aligning the tip of his cock to her entrance with one hand, gripping the side of her hip with the other, "Just how long have you been out here by yourself... Touching yourself, waiting for the guy who had as much nerve as you to come out here, with all this dangerous stuff around...

She bit her lip and glanced at him over her shoulder. "It was about a year ago that Professor Roscoe passed... Got too close to the live Guardian trying to study it and was zapped... I've been here all by my lonesome ever since..."

He paused just as he had slipped the tip inside, distracted despite the looming pleasure ahead. "Wait--Your professor was killed just down the beach, by that very Guardian, and you STAYED here after that...?"

Her glance turned just as incredulous as his currently was. "His last words were literally 'Do NOT blame the Guardian, he caught me slipping!', and he was 100% RIGHT! But is now really the time to focus on that...?"

Right. Now -he- was the one slipping -- Focus, Link... 

His nose and cheeks turned pink despite the mist, and he nodded back, "Ah... Right, you're right, just saying though... If you do end up having a child from this, I'd appreciate if you could keep them away from Guardians and other monsters at least until they're old enough for me to teach them how to protect themselves?"

She sighed right back, not as if that should have been obvious though, but as if she wished he wouldn't have remembered something like that... "Oh... Fine, agreed, I suppose that's what a good mom would do~ Now hurry up and make me one, hero! Pleeeeease~~~" She added extra sweetly after demanding it of him. 

He nodded back, now sure of that, and began to nervously press his hips forward... And realized that all his 'experienced professor' play was currently going off a damn cliff while he was now standing at the precipice of actually really doing this. He'd just remembered, oh no, don't virgin girls hurt and sometimes bleed their first times? He wasn't sure because he'd only been with more experienced women so far but he thought he'd heard that from other men. Damn, he really didn't want to hurt her like that, but then again he couldn't exactly stop NOW, could he--

And while he was busy doubting himself and her, she had gotten bored of waiting for him and brought her hips back on him suddenly... He'd already gotten the tip in, so her sudden push brought his cock over halfway inside all at once, with no resistance, no indication of pain, just one slick fluid motion. That certainly wasn't what he'd been told, but he sure as hell wasn't complaining either (And to hell with any guy who would), especially not when that slick but firm suction seemed to be pulling his dick even further inside...

Even though it was pretty obvious he still had to make sure, "You're not hurt by any of this so far, right--?"

She let out a rather unladylike snort at that, but then with her ass currently in the air bent over naked on a beach, it was probably the best time not to care about that. "The only thing that's painful now is that you're still making me wait for this, hero..."

His cheeks were definitely hot now. Alright, if she insisted -- Virgin or no, if she was such a tough girl that she could handle camping out on a monster and guardian infested beach by herself, then she was tough enough to handle his cock...

No longer worrying, he pressed the heroic piece she was begging for inside, the rest of the way in at once, and as he expected there was no sign of any pain from her at all, only a long, finally satisfied, shaky, melting moan... What he didn't expect, however, was the way her slick, pulsing inner folds suddenly GRIPPED onto him, holding him inside despite his inclination to thrust. He could still manage to, but only short thrusts, and each one was even more difficult than the last. The pleasure of it was literally so good but so intense as to be on the verge of painful. He had to stop for a second to compose himself. It was nearly overwhelming...

Thankfully it seemed Loone was a bit overwhelmed and needed a minute too, but Link knew it wouldn't be long until she was begging him to finish what they'd started... And thankfully, between then, he'd heard the distant howl of a wolf... For some reason he felt invigorated by the sound. He was just as wild and free as that beast, wasn't he? He could run and hunt just like them, right? Then he could certainly make love like one too...

He gripped her hips almost as strong as she was gripping him, began pulling and pushing her halfway on and off his cock, jabbing his cock deep inside every time they came together. It made her cry out loud and grip onto him even tighter, while simultaneously gripping tighter around Roscoe too, moaning to him while one of her legs bent at the knee, curling up around him involuntarily as her mind clouded with lust like the mist around the sea... "Oooh...! P-Professor, L-Link--!" 

Hero or no, he knew it would be hard to keep this up too long with the way she was squirming and -gripping- so tight to him, barely letting him slip just long enough to push into her again... But the way she way shaking and barely able to say a thing without stuttering clued him in that he didn't have to worry about that much longer anyways. The pulsing of her body around him, coming and going like an ebb, reminded him of the waves coming in and out before them... Only much warmer, of course...

Actually... Her deep red hair... That reminded him of something else too. Someone else. Several someones... Across different times and places... Some that didn't even exist anymore, not even in ruins. One might have never even truly existed at all...?

He kind of forgot what he was even doing for a second... Still felt the pleasure of course, but forgot he was still making movements, until the silly woman underneath him suddenly pushed back against him and groaned, shaking helplessly... And then, at just the same time, a seagull took flight, crying out as it flapped it's wings across his horizon... A few more joined it, smaller ones, and Link thought the strangest thing to himself before the ebb of pleasure crashed down over his mind... Before he blanked out for a minute, he thought to himself, 'That's right... One doesn't have to be a regal wolf all the time to do this... Even simple seagulls and bunny rabbits and such carry on their legacies... It was all only nature, not destiny...'

Still... Something about the cry of that seagull... Something about the occasional bellow of a cow or bull or the snort of a horse, something about the sounds of certain animals always made him think of a red-haired girl he could no longer remember...

Well... At least now... He had memories of a red-haired girl of his own to recall.

Only a few short minutes after the deed was done, while Link was still trying to roam his hands over her body, the mist picked back up into rain, and the pair groaned at the extra cold droplets now pelting them. Their timing had apparently been good at least, and Link quickly picked the maiden up into his arms, carrying her back to her spot by the fire to get warm and dry again, using a fire sword from his pack's arsenal to relight the kindling.

They cuddled up together next to the fire for the rest of the night, warming their bodies and clothes until the firewood was left as glowing embers in the morning. Link gathered up some eggs from the nests of a few nearby trees and made them some omelets with the remaining bird and crab meat he had on hand from last night's meal, and they both ate together, side by side, in a shared silence...

...Afterwards Loone sat on top of him and they were less than silent for a little while, because well, she could hardly get less pregnant at this point, right?

But after THAT they began to gather their items together. Loone agreed to head to the nearest civilization right away and take shelter away from the wilderness just in case she came with child, and Link left her with a final kiss on the forehead...

She was the one who got the last words though, as she turned to travel the opposite way down the beach, she waved back at him and laughed, "Hey, just don't be a jealous ex if I'm dating a REAL professor next time you see me, alright? But then, since we did such a -thorough exploration- together... I guess we can safely call you a scholar like me! HAHA~! See you later, Scholar Link~!"

'My, my...' He thought to himself, 'Will the next woman I meet teach me as many interesting new things as you did, Scholar Loone...?'

He could only hope. But he -was- feeling hopeful. He was feeling pretty warm and fuzzy, even, despite the misty morning air and the cold drizzle of rain still falling down on the beach...

OoOoOoOoOoOoOoOoOoOoO


	3. Sharing Secrets with Adventurous and Noble Prince Sidon

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> So THIS got out of control XDDD;;;; I figured it had turned out to be a long chapter but HOLY CRAP WHAT IS THIS BEAST XDDD; THIS CHAPTER IS ALMOST AS LONG AS SIDON'S--
> 
> ...PPFFFFT. Aaaaanyways! XD;; ALSO! Please note! Some kinda heavy stuff comes up at the end of this chapter! Otherwise it's mostly just good kinky fun as usual! Just be forewarned, I was kinda inspired to stare into the abyss and try to take a mature-shot at the darker side of what I've seen of the Zelda fandom and its theories... And what a "real" Link might think of our horrid little imaginations. ^^;;;; 
> 
> Hope you enjoy this little romp into the M/M side of things! Next time methinks Link will be visiting Rhondson in the Akkala region, and after some more evil butt-kicking he'll eventually visit Paya once more before his fight with Ganon, and after rescuing Zelda, eh, heck with it, I might have the two of them take a little adventure of their own later too~ XD
> 
> Please comment or kudo if you enjoy, I really worked hard on this one! Peace until the next piece! ^^ (Hopefully the FF7 Remake doesn't leave me useless to this for months... XD)

Link had quite the adventure with Loone on the beach... But of course, he was always up for more adventure, and more adventure was always soon in store for him.

Following his sensor he made his way to the nearby Gerudo Highlands... First he found what was probably the strangest shrine yet, surrounded by heaps upon heaps of monster bones, rotting flesh and fruit, and buzzing flies. He was actually glad he hadn't bothered to eat in a day before that or else he definitely would have thrown up. And in the midst of all that insanity was something, or someone, even crazier. A beautiful woman, making some of the UGLIEST, most cursed "dubious food" he'd ever seen in his life. It was worse than bad, it was unholy. She even added ROCKS to it? Monster parts is one thing! He'd gotten hungry enough and only had that stuff lying around before, he could admit that, but ROCKS?

Soooo YEAH, when she asked him to join her for dinner after he came out of the shrine... He promptly ran for the nearest cliff and sailed away from her and her mess...

His sensor led him to two more shrines over the cliffs, one in a mysterious labyrinth that he swore to bring Zelda back to study someday once she was free again, for he knew that was just the kind of mysterious ancient thing she'd love. Then after climbing over the cliffs where Vah Naboris now laid in wait, he used the vantage point to find the trail below, where he began to glide down.

When he was getting near to the ground he noticed that there was a group of four travelers making their way down the road. As he got close enough to land next to them, he realized he recognized them. It was... Wait, what was their names again, it had been a while... Their 'leader', his name was Salami, right? Or something like that, who cared about him though. Like a coward, he had abandoned his own companions on the way to visit the Gerudo area when they were ambushed by monsters. Of course concerned about their well-being, Link went out to find the four, and found them just in the nick of time before monsters were about to beat them up. After that the four had shared a meal with Link at the Gerudo Canyon Stable out of gratitude, everyone of course ignoring That Guy the whole time.

They had apparently completed the trip to Gerudo Town, or the girls had at least because they were still wearing the traditional Gerudo garb - Cute, chubby Canolo in a pink one and flaxen-haired Flaxel donning the light blue. If the guys had bothered getting one to go into town they obviously had them hidden away now.

The one with the impressive mustache (man Link wished he would grow one someday... Hadn't it been long enough now?), Oliff, greeted him first as he touched down from the sky, just beyond the path next to the Jee Noh shrine he had completed last year. "Oh, hey there, Link. Good to see you again, friend."

Canolo, who was a little more nosy, began to pry right away, "What are you doing back in these parts, huh? Didja miss us~?" She lightly teased, causing Flaxel to flick her in the ear for being too obvious with her flirting, not that she was serious about it.

"Hehe..." Link rubbed the back of his neck. "Well, sure - I mean, I'm also just a guy with too much time on his hands that's been doing circles back and forth all over these lands, but yeah, I miss good company when I meet them too. What about you guys though? Heading out on another adventure?"

All four of them groaned at once... Long, low and pathetic, the result of not a hard day, but a whole damn hard year...

Palme put a palm to his forehead and began to rub it harshly. "No more adventures... Not after this one..."

Canolo sighed, deep and sad. "Worst adventure ever..."

Well damn... That just made Link's heart hurt to hear. Adventure was his life, and yeah not everyone was cut out for it, but back in Hyrule's highest point between four or five adventurers working together, the possibility of taking a trip around several different lands to sight-see was far from impossible. But in these times, there were even fewer companions to find, less of them fighting or traveling types, and even if they were, even sticking to the path would often lead you into trouble with something here and there. Most people nowadays, if they dared to adventure at all, only tried to take one big trip of leisure in their lives to tell others about, if they tried to at all. Otherwise most people only traveled places out of necessity or left it up to the few seasoned and experienced travelers that worked to keep the pathways from fading, as so many were.

Like the path to Zora's Domain, so many travelers used to come to the Zora compared to now, which was such a shame, they had such a glorious home to welcome others into...

Link was starting to get an idea...

"You guys aren't going to go home right away, are you? You're from Hateno, right?" Pretty sure he remembered at least the two gals and Palme saying they had traveled from there. "Well, it's like... Aaaalmost just as far a distance to go to Zora's Domain instead. Like it's maybe a few miles further and the path is way more winding, and especially at the end when you're getting near there's a lot of winding roads and a bit of climbing you have to do, but trust me when I say? If there's one place I tell most people they should make a trip to, if you can handle a lot of water, Zora's Domain is one of the single most breathtakingly beautiful places you could ever go in your life. I really can't stress it enough. It's like... There's a life you had before you see Zora's Domain? And a completely different life after. Just getting there is full of amazing sightseeing, no offense to Gerudo Town, but it's really one of the only nice things to see in the desert... The surrounding sights? Here and there can be amazing if you can survive getting to them, but most people can't and even if you make it to the Bazaar and Gerudo Town, no offense to the Gerudo and their customs, but only women are allowed, while in Zora's Domain? All who are respectful are welcome, and even though it's a bit of trip there, trust me, it's so, SO worth it. When you get almost there, to the Bank of Wishes? You'll know then that you made the right decision and even if you're dead tired you'll keep going forward when you see the sparkling jewel-like cliffs, the ore of which makes the absolutely spectacular Zora bridges and architecture. I'm telling you it looks like water crystalized! It shimmers like the sea but frozen in time! Not to mention the prettiest pink and purple coral-bushes grow there, and rare bright eyed crab is most plentiful in their waters-And when you get to the Great Zora Bridge, and see their domain in its fullness...? You'd understand if you stood there. Your life would be changed forever... Please guys. Please tell me you'll at least go there before you're ready to be done with adventures...?"

He had their full attention, each and every one of them were looking at him with full, wide, believing eyes - Until the very end, when he asked them to really go there. They believed what he was saying, he spoke to them before and had been much less chatty, so since he had so much to say about the place they knew he was telling the truth. But for them to go, now, after they had been so thoroughly beaten before...

The four of them huddled up together and spoke a little while. Link could of course hear everything but waited patiently for them to explain aloud, "I mean... We'd love to, it sounds amazing... But we're not really as amazing at adventuring as you, Link... It might be safest for us to just go home... However! We sure would be grateful if you would at least follow us to the next stable and share some good food and drink with us? Our treat? It's the least we could do..." Canolo explained kindly for the the men, who were too ashamed for admit it themselves and stood silently behind her.

But then Flaxel held up a bottle, a fancy looking one with Gerudo markings and jewels that Link recognized right away. The fabled Noble Pursuit, which Urbosa had once allowed him to indulge in but had since been unable to get anyone in present day Gerudo Town that would allow it! Sheesh! Buuuut it seemed his grateful new friends had procured some, or at least the girls had been able to in Gerudo Town, they guys had probably stayed at the bazaar, unless...?

Link shooed away that thought, yeah, he was NOT gonna ask them THAT, pft...

...At least not until he'd had a drink or two...

...Nah, on second thought, nevermind. Better not ask them or they might ask him too, heh...

So they all settled down and Link pulled out some pre-cooked meat and rice dishes he had on hand, which everyone agreed was very tasty. Canolo provided some desserts, she was unsurprisingly very good at making sweets like cakes and crepes, which Link in no way judged her for, because damn did she make a darn good crepe! Then they all passed the bottle around until the five of them had swigged away the whole thing, probably about four shots each between them, the last extra one given to Link at everyone's insistence. Strong stuff, but damn was it good stuff~!

Then the company went back down the path. It was just kinda unspoken that they would have fun but not stress the tempting Zora issue or the bummer that was their not being as cool an adventurer as Link, unable to go to such a cool place... And that's what they were doing, until they got to the Digdogg Suspension Bridge. Then another issue was promptly presented to them...

Palme's jaw fell and he smacked his forehead, something he often did, which might be why his forehead was kinda flat. "W-What the heck?! This stupid Hinox wasn't here before?! And of all the dumb places to take a nap-!"

Oliff, who was usually more quiet than not, sighed and supplied, "A bokoblin, a moblin or lizalfo, I will fight, no problem. Well, most of the time no problem, unless they sneak up on or ambush me... But something like this..." After that he trailed off and sighed. It was kind of understood that Oliff was the strongest in their group and if something was too much for him, the rest of the group should agree to try and find another way.

But this time was different. This time Link was part of their group. "Guys Hinox's really aren't that tough... They're just big. But they're dumb as heck. I could take this guy alone, but if you wanna help, yanno, it'd be faster and make it easier for me..."

Oliff make a choking noise and the girls gasped behind him as he scolded Link as respectfully as he could, "Sir Link! We cannot provoke this Hinox! It would be wiser to go around!"

Link arched a brow and asked fairly, "How?" Motioning around... Nothing but a big drop into water in front of them and giant mountains around...

Flaxel spoke up for him then, "Okay, but just because it seems like the only choice still doesn't mean it's a good or smart choice..."

Link shrugged, getting bored already of them being so scared of that big dummy, and proceeded to lay it out flat for them, "Alright, well, here's the thing-Like I said, I can totally take that Hinox by myself if I feel the need to, and I'm going to. It was a stupid place for that dumb beast to take a nap and he was asking for it anyways. If you guys wanna make it easy for me, all I ask you to do is shoot arrows at the thing. Try to aim for the eye, or at least the face. If you guys do that then all I'd have to do is keep throwing my bombs at it and we'd have it dead in no time! And just saying you guys... If you could defeat a Hinox with me here, don't you think you could make it to Zora's Domain with me? Since there's nothing tougher on the way there than what you couldn't take on with me helping?"

He asked it so slyly then, he knew the others would have to at least consider it then. They had to know a guy like him had important things to do too, and that him taking the time to accompany them there was a favor. Heck a lot of seasoned travelers would charge them for it, probably Sucky Sesami was doing just that. But it was a favor he wanted to do... Not just for the fun of it of course, it was good to keep picking off enemies that came back and go back to places to see if he found anything new, which he always did. But he couldn't help but admit at least to himself, deep down... He wanted to amaze these goofs. He wanted to show them an adventure, and have a good time with them. He'd always secretly wanted to do stuff like that... Now he just needed other people to want to do it too...

To show them he was serious he promptly pulled out one of his circular bombs and rolled it right in between the sleeping Hinox's legs - That was his favorite way to wake up the dumb beasts, bomb to the bits. Classic. And an effective way to start, as even though the eyes were typically the weak spot, well, so was -that- spot.

The giant monster snorted and groaned and rose up to it's feet, looking around. The others in the group got nervous, but Link just followed up with another bomb to the legs, reminding them, "Come on guys, arrows! Use as many as you need to, take some of mine if you run out, we'll get more at the stable once we beat this big jerk!"

Nodding and taking out their basic travelers bows, Flaxel, Canolo and Palme began pelting it with arrows while Link ran around the monster's legs, keeping it distracted while Link ran around it, throwing bombs and occasionally swiping a slash at the legs or behind. It was clear in no time that Link would indeed have had the upper hand even without their help, the clunky monster couldn't even keep up, let alone hope to catch him. Big though it was, it was all too apparent that this goliath would soon fall hard.

They had just a few shots left to finish it off when Link suddenly fell back, struck in the shoulder with an arrow that had come out of nowhere. His friends might not be seasoned adventurers but he knew right away it couldn't have been any of them. The arrow had come flying from the opposite direction, and following it's path Link soon realized it had come from a Yiga archer that had appeared just when he was distracted most by the Hinox...

Link hardly even cared about that half-dead behemoth anymore, without even looking at the Hinox he got back up, took a final arrow shot and hit it right in between the eyes while his attention was focused on the Yiga the entire time, yelling at him while finishing off the Hinox, "YOU CHEAP SHOT TAKING SON OF A BITCH YOU BETTER HIT ME BETWEEN THE EYES IN THE NEXT TWO SECONDS OR YOU'RE-!"

Dead. The Yiga was already dead. A sword had been hurled hard from his new friends, struct the Yiga right through the head, and he could hear Oliff shout behind him as he watched the evil archer and the sword fall into the waters far below, "I AGREE SIR LINK! THAT WAS A CHEAP SHOT AND I WON'T STAND FOR IT EITHER!"

Everyone took a moment to settle and take a few sighs after that... Then the still-tipsy group began to giggle and laugh, amazed and in a little disbelief that they had really just done that... Until Canolo gasped and pointed at Link, "AH! Oh no, Link, that arrow-!"

Link attempted to look behind his back, apparently not as concerned as she was. "It went all the way through right?" The chubby woman nodded nervously and then gasped as the young man proceeded to snap the arrow in half and, going to Oliff because he seemed the least squeamish about it, requested that he pull the other half out. Once he did, Link pressed over the wound with his hands, after wrapping them with bandages. He explained during, "It's okay, it went through so this will heal in no time. I heal fast anyways. Stupid Yiga didn't even strike the right side of my chest to get my heart, pft, and even if they had they still woulda been way off. Anyways though, to the victors now go the spoils, right? I'm gonna take the monster parts but I'm fully stocked on weapons. Oliff, since you sacrificed your sword for me, do you want that royal halberd?" He suggested, motioning to it.

Oliff blinked in surprised, clearly pleased by the offering, though he seemed to have trouble expressing acceptance of it. "Oh, well... Indeed. That IS a mighty fine spear there... I shall take it gladly then. Thank you, Sir Link."

Link nodded then motioned to the others. "There's also a royal bow, and a Moonlight scimitar... You guys go ahead and decide who wants what, then we can move on, okay?"

Flaxel had bought a standard Gerudo scimitar in Gerudo Town. She gifted that to Canolo and took the moonlight scimitar, and Palme, with wide adoring eyes of disbelief, took the royal bow onto his back, exclaiming excitedly, "Oh MAN that's SHINY~!"

"True, but that's why monsters like them so much too..." Canolo sighed, not too bothered by not getting an extra shiny weapon herself, since as she was about to point out as well, "And don't get too attached, you know we gotta toss em the first sign of lightning..."

Unceremoniously ripping off a toenail, Link remarked, "I won't bear a grudge if you want to sell them for more convenient weapons and supplies when we get to the stable." That guy that sold the horse he gifted him though? Screw that guy, he held a grudge with him... "But if the weather looks like it might be good for a few days you should try to hold on to them for at least a little while. Weapons crafted that well do a lot more damage to monsters than wooden ones."

They agreed and then headed over the bridge together, down the grassy path and around a bend until they came to the Outskirt Stable. The weather had held up until then and it looked like it would be clear and sunny for at least a few days so the group held on to their weapons, preferring instead to let others admire them for procuring them from a Hinox. Link grinned, knowing that the praise would go to their heads, but only in the best way. These guys needed the confidence boost, and that taste of a successful adventure to make them want more.

Also, while they were there, and since they had decided to pass around another one of Flaxel's bottles of Noble Pursuit, which she had at least a few more of too, Link told them about visiting the coliseum the previous year, and insisted they should check it out since they were so close. "It's an amazing part of history. A kind of dark part of history, but an amazing one nonetheless! They used to take the worst of the worst kinds of criminals, those too evil to just be imprisoned, to be basically executed by monster ambush. Not the best legal system though as you can imagine, as if on the rare chance someone was strong enough to take out all the monsters, they won their freedom. Well, the prisoners are long gone but the monsters stuck around. I got rid of the batch that was there last year though. Did you guys manage to get some good data before the next batch of weaklings moved in, though? They always take the spots of strong ones not long after you beat em..." He mentioned to a pair of nearby researchers, who he apparently had met before.

But they sadly shook their heads. "Well... We managed to get a little bit of data, but it wasn't long before some other monsters came to move in where the others left space. A pair of moblins, and then a lizalfo... We tried to still gather what we could but then another LYNEL showed up. We knew we had to stay away then..."

Link nearly choked on his drink at that. "WHAT? Another LYNEL? Already?! DAMN it! Goddesses I hate all monsters but those damn lynels are the WORST! UGH-! NO, SERIOUSLY! Let me TELL YOU SOMETHING-" He apparently felt very chatty at the moment, banging on the table now for the whole stable's attention. "I'm USUALLY a REALLY NICE GUY, okay?! I try to be patient with people but if there is ONE thing I have NO patience for, it's MONSTERS! They just fill me with UNCONTROLLABLE RAGE AND BLOOD-LUST? They are ANNOYING, and SMELLY, and I could forgive them for all that but worst of all? THEY'RE MEAN TO GIRLS. AND -THAT- I JUST CANNOT STAND! Because like? Girls are the BEST. Women are so pretty and kind and it PISSES ME OFF THAT THERE ARE MORE MONSTERS IN THE WORLD THAN LADIES. Well ya know what? I've decided to make it MY life's mission to restore that balance! TO LESS MONSTERS AND MORE LADIES!" He cheered, taking one more drink from his sturdy mug before slamming it down with a satisfying thud, much to the cheers and admiration of those inside, especially the other inebriated young men...

Flaxel fairly pointed out though, "Link, we believe you, but don't be crazy... Maybe someone like you can apparently beat a lynel but you shouldn't try something so dangerous while drunk..."

She was totally right about that, but also, Link was totally bored of just sitting around drinking by now. He was in the mood to go do something fun. "Well, you'd normally be right. Most people shouldn't take on a lynel at all no matter what, and any sword-happy doofuses would do well to remember that I'm professionally trained and not to try something unless you are, BUT, if there's one monster I just -cannot- leave alone when I see it, it's a lynel. I HATE those guys more than ANY other monster. When I see one, I know I gotta kill it... Because I know I'm one of the only people who even can. And I don't say that to brag, I promise, but the thought of something like THAT being free to keep repopulating, even if it is super rare... I can't stand that. I see a lynel, I kill it. Having a very small few in confinement for study and conservation is one thing, but all these lynels roaming around in the wild right now? HELL no. Like geez, how do you think that coliseum lynel got replaced so fast? The new one had to have been a mate or something! SHIT, what if it's pregnant? Okay, I gotta go kill this thing right now..."

He apparently made up his mind on the spot, getting up from his chair and heading out of the stable. The others at the table choked and sputtered, quickly following after him. "LINK!" Canolo scolded him. "You SERIOUSLY can't just do something like this drunk!"

He was much faster than them though, and when he broke into a run and began quickly scaling the tall sheer side of the coliseum, they knew there was no way they could catch up to let alone bring him down now. They tried to appeal to him, but Link quickly shushed them, "Don't alert the dang thing I'm coming! I SERIOUSLY can't just let this demon keep living on such a beautiful sun-shiny day! Just chill out and run around to the front entrance, by the time you get there this thing'll be dead!"

Less than a minute after telling them that, he reached the top, and before anyone could beg him to reconsider, he had jumped inside. The group began to stumble to run around the coliseum, hearing but not seeing all kinds of craziness going inside. First they heard several smaller monsters squeal in pain and fall with a thud at the same time, apparently brought down by several well-aimed arrows at once. Then they heard several series of explosions hit the bottom, bomb arrows, at least half a dozen fired at one target. A lynel promptly roared with rage, and a loud, dramatic battle ensued soon after. Most of which they group couldn't see, only until they got to the entrance could they start to see the end of it.

Link was just running circles around the fire-breathing lynel, then when the creature was out of flames Link pulled out a few shock arrows and shot it in the face, exclaiming, "YEAH, YOU'RE NOT THE ONLY ONE WHO'S GOT THE ZAPPY-STICKS! NOT SO BAD NOW ARE YA? HYAAA-!" He exclaimed with finality, running around the lynel, hopping on it's back, slashing it's hindquarters to ribbons, then stabbing it right though the armpit when he saw an opening.

Gurgling and groaning in it's death, Link jumped off of the beast and dusted himself off. The other four travelers slowed to a walk approaching him, tired after running the rest of the way and in shock at what they'd actually just seen. "Dude what are you MADE of...?" Palme weakly asked, giving himself a much-needed head-smack for good measure.

Despite how drunk he was though, Link actually gave him a surprisingly straightforward and serious answer to that. "I'm made... Of this lynel I just killed. I'm made of all the monsters I've ever killed. Each one I defeat adds to my strength. Same as anybody else. We're all made of the battles we survived. So if that's the case, each of you has got a bit of the strength of a Hinox in you too! And if that's the case, and little old me can take down a lynel, and little old you guys can help me take down a Hinox and a Yiga... Don't you think you guys, together, can make an adventure to Zora's Domain? I'm telling you, it's a hundred times more grand and amazing than even THIS." He concluded, motioning around with his hands outstretched at the enormous coliseum around him. "And it's waiting for YOU, tough guys." He then pointed at the group of them, and then out towards the wilderness, in the general direction of the domain. "Out there, just beyond the horizon and your limitations. Last offer, otherwise I'm going there by myself anyways because it's awesome and worth seeing more than once in your life. But never seeing it at all is a travesty... So, what do you say, guys?"

They looked at each other. Even completely drunk they could tell that their best chance of making it was with this guy, and even though he was completely crazy... He was also totally fun and amazing and there was no way they were going home now.

Oliff nodded first, "If nothing else I wish to study how bravely you do battle, Sir Link. But I trust your claim that this pilgrimage to Zora's Domain will be well worth the endeavor. I for one accept. I want to see what adventure still may await me..." He then looked to his companions, who were slowly starting to smile past their nervousness and nod along.

Palme smacked his forehead, but he seemed to do so with less exasperation this time, "Man, I thought we learned our lesson when we split with Sesami... But then, maybe we just had the wrong teacher. I'm with Oliff, I wanna see what I can learn from this strong guy on the way there! How about you girls, are you gonna come with us too?"

Canolo put her hands on her hips, "As if we're gonna let the boys have an amazing adventure without us! We're in! Right Flaxel?" She thought to confirm, since her friend looked a little doubtful for some reason.

The blonde woman nodded but voiced her concern as well, "I'm definitely in... But no offense Link? I think we should save the last few bottles of Noble Pursuit until we get to Zora's Domain... You know, to make extra sure we actually -get- there. And please, if you see any more lynels along the way, just come back later!"

"You nearly gave me a heart attack..." Canolo agreed, and Link sheepishly rubbed the back of his head.

"Heh... Sorry guys. Like I said, monsters infuriate me and killing them is just what I do, I have to, to make sure others won't be hurt by them... But on the rare chance we do see something else extra strong along the way... Well, I'll give you warning to take cover while I beat it at least!"

The group agreed that it all sounded sensible enough for a completely crazy idea, and after taking the lynels weapons for himself, Link led the way along the path back around the coliseum and to the main road going towards the Lanayru region.

After the insanity at the coliseum the next couple days of travel were thankfully MUCH more normal. They decided to cut through the path to the exchange ruins which soon brought them to Riverside Stable. They stopped there too, rested for a night in soft beds at Link's insistence and at his treat, then continued the next morning after buying all the arrows and other supplies they had. Link would normally get just a little more than he needed, but since he had a group with him he was extra generous for both them and their sellers and bought all they had.

From there they crossed both the Horwell Bridge and the Eagus Bridge. Any few monsters along the way were thoroughly thrashed by the adventurers, with both new confidence and shiny weapons that they had no problem beating them with until they broke because if it started to rain they'd probably have to throw them away anyways. But thankfully they held up and so did the sunshine for at least a while, so it seemed like their adventure was being blessed so far. They made it past the first side of the wetlands and up to the Wetland Stable, where they also stayed, even though they were still good on supplies from the last time they stocked up fully here too, because it was agreed in advance at Link's suggestion that they not go out of the way to Woodland Stable and simply continue forward to Zora's Domain, because he reasoned that the fish, crab, and other foods one could forage for would be plentiful along the way.

The others agreed too, because so far the rest of the journey with Link protecting them had practically been a cake-walk compared to trudging through the hot desert getting beat by bokoblins because of lying stupid Se-sucky. Link did warn them fairly though, "The last part of the journey will be the toughest, I'll admit. Plenty of climbing. But it will also be the most rewarding. Like I said, everything in Gerudo Desert is a sight to see, but Zora's Domain is a -wonder-, and the everything -just getting close to it- is the sight to see."

Gerudo Desert did have it's wonders, but again, they were either accessible only to women or to adventurers with death-defying capabilities. But these guys with him were definitely going to make it there. It was just too bad that along the way, past Crenel Peak, was one of the best views of Hyrule castle one could safely get to...

"Man it's so creepy..." Canolo whimpered.

Link nodded to her, "Yeah, it is... But yanno, between us guys..." He didn't normally tell most people stuff like this, but he trusted these guys, just like they trusted him with their life after this journey. "Someday... Even though it's going to take a few more years still until I'm strong enough, until I've found everything I'm still looking for... I'm going to make that castle the way it once was, long ago. I'm going to bring back the princess that protects us all from the demon that took her castle and her kingdom, and give them both back to her. Princess Zelda... True Queen of that castle in the distance... It's glowed for over a hundred years like that... You know what... I believe that beautiful glow is her, battling in the darkness. But someday, when she's back? The castle will -shine-. Once the sun shines on her once more..."

The rest of the group got a deep shiver up their spine watching him and listening to him then. They had their suspicions along the way but now... They Knew.

Things got a little more lighthearted at the other side of the Thims Bridge, where Link waved to two guys sitting on a nearby hill. He apparently knew them, they were a group of shield surfers with three shields for sale to ride down the hill on. Link offered the group a ride and Canolo, Palme and Flaxel gladly accepted. Oliff thanked him but somberly sat out.

After riding for a few hours, until the sun had set and the shields were almost bust, Link and his few slept with the shield surfers under the stars for the night and then set out on the path past the wetlands in the morning. Unfortunately the wetlands got their name for a reason, and by the morning-time it had starting to rain. It was only a light rain though, so they agreed to keep their weapons for hunting until the first sign of thunder.

The walk past Zelo Pond and most of the rest of the wetlands was peaceful, they collected a lot of rare bright eyed crab along the way. But by the time they got to the Bone Pond Link realized that a new Lizalfo clan had taken residence there, and noticed them walking past. They were forced to do battle and though they did well the first half of it, thunder suddenly started rumbling and their metal weapons started sparking.

"DROP THE WEAPONS AND RUN FOR IT NOW, I'LL TAKE CARE OF THE REST!" Link commanded, and they did as they were told, although they were unsure of how he would survive until they saw him put on a strange gold helmet. He was then struct directly by lightning just a few moments later, killing all the remaining lizalfos around him, but leaving him fine.

Keeping the helmet on he ran just slightly ahead of them until the thunderstorm had passed. Thankfully it didn't take too long, in fact, by there were no more sparks around by the time they reached the abandoned cooking pot just before the bridge, though unfortunately since it was still raining they couldn't cook. However, the rest of the group didn't care to think much about food too much longer when they noticed what laid just directly ahead of them, over a small rock climb. There was the first of the Zora-made bridges, made with their special and unique form of architecture - The Inogo Bridge.

Everyone went a little awestruck, and stopped for a few moments to stare at the giant pillars of shimmering blue crystal. Canolo, mouth wide, finally managed to ask, "Oh my goddesses... It's just like you said... The colors shine like the sea, but frozen like ice... Is this the 'Bank of Wishes' you mentioned before...?"

Link laughed, "No, not quite. I can see how you'd make the mistake though. It's Inogo Bridge. But have hope you guys. We're almost-almost there! We just still have to cross Oren Bridge just past the real Bank of Wishes, then Luto's Crossing, and once we make it around Ruto Mountain and to the Great Zora Bridge, we'll be there, Zora's Domain, where everything is made of this amazing stuff!"

Invigorated by the beautiful bridge, the group followed Link and the lovely Zora lamp-posts that led the way, winding around paths of trees and rock overhead formations, like miniature mountains surrounding them. Just ahead was the first of the signs made with Zora crystal ore instead of wood, indicating that "Zora's Domain" was indeed ahead. From there they crossed two giant boulder bridges and climbed up a long slope, which was making poor Canolo's stubby legs awful sore, but she did her best to keep up with everyone. Best not to lag behind when there might be a lizalfo sneaking around...

It ended up to be the case as they reached the Tabahl woods, where a group of lizalfos with shock arrows were waiting for them. Link ushered the others to wait behind him while he rushed ahead with the Thunder Helm on, and single-handedly took care of the lizalfos with only a few arrows from Palme for help, half of which missed anyways.

Just beyond the defeated lizalfos the team crossed a set of Zora pillars, which led through a narrow passageway between a rock corridor, where again, Link with his special helmet walked ahead picking off the electric keese for the very impressed group, who did their best to be helpful and shoot an arrow or two at the bothersome bats.

At the end of the passageway Link announced to the others, "Alright you guys, behold... The Bank of Wishes!"

They outright gasped. The sparkling cliffs were beautiful any time of day, but they have arrived as just the perfect time - Twilight. And thankfully by then the rain had waned away, too. The colors of the sky blended perfectly with the colors of the natural ore cliffs, which stretched out across almost their entire horizon, except for, of course, the stunning view of the Divine Beast Vah Ruta just beyond those cliffs, watching them and protecting them.

Palme and Canolo had to hold each other for a minute there, and Flaxel stood by the bank, kicked her shoes off and put her feet in, resting them in the cool waters while she took in the whole view. The rest of the group, even Link and Oliff, soon joined her. Once it was darker and colder they set up a fire and got warm again next to it, resting through the night until the next day.

Through another rocky corridor with a few keese to pick off here and there, with some ore to smash at the end which contained topaz, and was gifted to the girls in the group. After that they followed down another path which brought them to the second goal, Oren Bridge.

Palme and the girls gave a little cheer, even despite the lizalfo ahead guarding a cooking pot. They even took care of it themselves without Link's help at all, which made him smile. Then they set up next to the cooking pot and made their own meals with the crab and fish and mushrooms and herbs and other such goodies along the way. They had a tasty meal and prepared more for later, and then continued on climbing up the next path.

Here were the purple bushes and pink coral saplings that Link had told them of before, and the girls cooed over their loveliness. The sight of it made the next much steeper climb worth it on poor Canolo's little legs, which almost gave one once, and at that point, Link kindly and bravely carried her on his back for a few minutes to let her rest, though it also made her blush, and she only made him do it for a little while, until she caught her breath, then she thanked him and continued next to Flaxel, giggling to each other behind him. Link smirked knowingly ahead.

Through another narrow mountain passage, at the top of which was a lovely shining plate of ore with their language inscribed upon it. The Divine Beast loomed even closer to them as Link read aloud to them the History of the Zora, part 1, which they marveled over before continuing to the left. The path after that sort of did a strange up and down, but then finally eventually arrived at a very long, -loooong- bridge, which Link announced was Luto's Crossing.

Palme challenged Oliff to a race, but of course Oliff easily won, he also didn't brag about it either, just smirked with satisfaction and shook his friend's hand.

Through yet another mountain corridor, up Ruto Mountain, winding around and gradually lit with Zora lamps, which they were thankful for now, traveling a bit more by night now in their hurry and excitement.

At the top of the mountain a traveler's sword and shield was there for the taking, which the group offered to Oliff as a prize for winning the race. There was also another Zoran history ore plate, which told of brave King Dorephan and how he hurled a guardian into a ravine, gaining his scar. The group marveled over the king's bravery and hoped they'd get the chance to see him, aloud, suggestively. Link laughed and promised they'd get to meet him, and soon too.

As he promised, as they continued to go up, up, and yet further up, Palme and Link holding Canolo's hand and Flaxel pushing her back to help her along a bit at the very top, they eventually began to go gradually down again, sloping around, until the last Zoran lamp-post bought them to the last rock bridge formation before they finally saw it... The magnificence of the Great Zora Bridge, and the glorious wonder of Zora's Domain beyond it.

They stopped just before reaching the Great Zora Bridge. Morning had just begun, the sun rising behind them, lighting up the whole world beyond, light sparkling off of all the gleaming architecture. The girls needed to stop and hold each other again, falling to their knees on the grass. Palme went ahead and joined them. Oliff didn't, but he did get to his knees in reverence, bowing his head to the ground, and murmuring, "Thank you, Great Goddesses, for bringing us to this sacred place safely..."

Link then stood before them, smiled big at them, and made sure they knew... "You did it guys! You made it!"

Flaxel and Palme managed to wipe the tears from their eyes in a few minutes, but Canolo cried almost halfway up the bridge. Thank goodness this was an extra long bridge... She managed to finally dry her eyes when she noticed all the excited-looking Zorans gathering ahead at the end of the bridge to greet them, though.

That's when she wiped them on her sleeve and announced to the group, "Hey, you guys... I'm pretty sure we can officially call this? The BEST. ADVENTURE! EVEEER!" Then, seemingly forgetting about her stubby legs she ran the rest of the way ahead, the rest of her team soon joining her, bowing excitedly to the Zorans as the finally arrived.

The first two Zoran guards cooed over them first, since they were officially the greeters. "Welcome to Zora's Domain! Wow! We so rarely get visitors! And you're friends of Link's? Welcome travelers! Come and see all our Domain has to offer!"

"YES! COME NEW FRIENDS!" A mighty voice shouted above the rest, and the great red Prince Sidon, jewel of the Zora, sprang forth dramatically from the waters, into the air, and landing right in front of the amazed travelers with a huge grin and a thumbs up. "FOR ANY FRIENDS OF LINKS ARE FRIENDS OF OURS! WELCOME! A FEAST AND GAMES FOR LINK AND HIS FRIENDS!"

Everyone was overjoyed and set to sharing stories of Link's valor over shared food and drink right away. Flaxel busted out her remaining bottles of Noble Pursuit, miraculously unbroken after the trip, and gifted one to Sidon and one to his father the King. The other bottles she shared with her friends and the Zoras that greeted them, announcing, "Alright! Every Zora here who is an adult, come get something spirited!"

A tiny little red Zora jumped forth, looking like a red lump of dough. "Ooh! I want some! I'm an adult! Zora's age differently you know-"

A sea of scolding voices drowned her out immediately, including Sidon, who supplied, "NO she is NOT, don't listen to her-Finley you QUIT telling outsiders you're an adult! I don't know why anyone falls for that, sheesh!"

After telling her to go play with the other just as obvious children, the real adults started sipping and supping on Zora crab omelets with rice, made by Sidon's personal chefs. Canolo then showed the Zora chef how to make cakes and crepes, and Link had plenty of fruit from his travels that needed to be used up (that amazing sheikah technology could keep food fresh much longer but it wasn't infallible) so wildberry crepes and banana cake was prepared for all.

After the meal they talked more of Link's adventures along the way here while letting the food settle, bragging deeply of how Link had protected them and shared with them, and more than that, inspired and encouraged them.

"We would have just gone home and never seen this place if not for Link... He insisted that our lives would be completely different if we came here, and he was completely right." Oliff told the prince at one point, one of the most sentimental things he'd ever been heard saying. "We are most grateful for arriving here safely and for the utmost of welcomes from our generous hosts. The Zora people forevermore have my utmost respect and admiration!" Aww. He might've been a little extra tipsy at that point but also it was from the heart~

After the food had settled in their stomachs, the Hylians were invited to swim in the Zora Rivers, accompanied by the Zorans for safety and fun tricks. Canolo, Flaxel, Palme and even Oliff had a blast allowing themselves to be carried on the swimming Zoran's backs, and hanging on with a vice-grip as they swam up waterfalls or did flips. After that they were given a much more thorough tour of the domain, including a viewing of Mipha's statue, and afterwards Link impressed them all by using Revali's Gale and then his own climbing skills and stamina to climb to the very top of the gigantic fish goddess statue overlooking the domain. After climbing down from it he had apparently found an old Silverscale spear someone had forgotten about up there, and since no one could remember whose it was, they gifted it to the traveler Oliff, who was most impressed with all the Zora craftsmanship. The entire group was of course, but Oliff especially was clearly inspired by what he saw, not just the beauty of it, but the spirit too.

Later that evening there was another feast, and over it an equally tipsy but very talkative King Dorephan gave a detailed account to everyone of his battle with the guardian at the ravine all those years ago, and then began to detail all the rest of the Zoran history and the tales of Mipha's valor that the group hadn't quite been able to find along the way. Most of the Zorans had heard the tales many times before but were listening respectfully. The little ones that were unfamiliar sat in front with the new travelers, up close to the King with wide eyes as he prepared to talk the whole night long about all of the Zora's proud history, and especially of his beloved lost child.

Some distance away, on one of the overlooking bridges, Link and Sidon had been taking a walk together through the domain, overseeing the King's speeches and talking quietly to themselves. Quietly, but quite frankly. Oh yes, very candidly, for both men. The king wasn't the only one feeling the Noble Pursuit loosening his tongue tonight...

"Tell me Link!" Sidon inquired suddenly, "It's absolutely astonishing that you brought these fine folks to us over the distance you did, and under the circumstances! But may I ask... Why them? Of all the travelers you've seen, why did you allow these ones to tag along with a busy man like you? Er, not that you're too busy to take some much needed time to yourself, of course! I was just curious about, er, well... Do you like any of those guys, or, well... Girls, more than others? Is that why you're letting them tag along for a while...?"

Link's cheeks went pink but he quickly shook his head no, "It's not like that... Not with them. I just felt really bad for these guys because their first attempt at an adventure went so haywire. Canolo, Flaxel and Palme are from Hateno. Oliff joined them from closer to Kakariko and he had been protecting them until they got to Gerudo territory. Apparently they mistakenly believed that despite the distance Gerudo would be the easiest to get to since it's straight across the map from Hateno, pretty much. Obviously once they actually got to desert territory they figured pretty quickly that they should get a guide. But they make the same mistake a lot of other rookie adventurers make coming into Gerudo. They get spooked the second they come into the Canyons and get one of the outsider Gerudo males to guide them. Those boys know enough to look knowledgeable about the area, and maybe a rare few did manage to self-teach themselves a bit, but seasoned adventurers know that if you need a guide in Gerudo territory, you only trust a real Gerudo woman. Even the Gerudo girl who hardly paid attention and ate fruit through all her classes knows more than any outsider male. And the guy they managed to pick was probably the worst of all. Not that he didn't know how to get there, but he was such a coward he allowed his group to get separated in an ambush while he ran to try and save himself!"

"Most cowardly!" Sidon had to interrupt there, though for the most part he respectfully and adoringly listened to every one of Link's rare words. Especially since he was so extra chatty tonight. "I hope he doesn't have the nerve to tell anyone else he's a guide from then on!"

Link nodded, "The others gave him a really loud public scolding at the stable when I brought them back. He definitely lost his reputation there at least, and I'm sure everyone else will know before long not to trust him. He'll have to find work he's better suited to, which is only right when people's lives are at stake. But yeah, those guys are actually fairly tough for village kids, but their confidence took a bad beating when they did. It's easy to be tough in a group but it's just as easy for a lot of folks to lose their courage when they're alone. Those poor guys got chased over the mountains and beaten up wherever they got found, then they had to heal up a while before moving to Gerudo territory. The girls were the only ones able to get into Gerudo Town of course, and the guys apparently thought the Bazaar was gonna be more interesting than it was... Basically not a lot of payout for all that effort getting there... And when I found them traveling back while I was passing through, well... I might have, erm... I might have been feeling extra sentimental for my own reasons, and felt extra inclined to go the extra few miles to help them, and direct them to where I knew they'd find something much more spectacular, no offense to the Gerudo, but the winding path that initially scared them off from traveling here to begin with may be formidable, but the sight of your domain? Is so, so worth it..."

Sidon blushed heavily there, proud for his people and their greatness, and beamed down a glorious toothy grin at him for that. "HAH! Link this is why you are known not just for your astounding bravery and your amazing sword skills, but for your great cunning, intelligence, empathy and kindness! I think it's beyond amazing that you led these adventurers to have the kind of journey they deserved, and that you were smart enough to take them here, haha! Really my friend, your virtues have no end! If I may, though...?" He suddenly got a little shy in the middle of his tirade. "You ah... Mentioned feeling extra sentimental when you met up with them...? Did something, happen...?"

He'd made it kind of obvious and Sidon was extra curious now... And even though Link was the kind of guy to generally keep mum about important stuff, well... He'd kind of been dying to tell someone he trusted. And he just really felt right now like he could trust Sidon... "Yeah... Something did... Like, I mean..." He rubbed the back of his neck, "Lets... Walk to a slightly higher bridge first, yeah?"

Sidon blinked in astonishment, nodding and following. Link's apparent nervousness made it clear this was an extra-EXTRA big deal, since he was normally so brave and honest and forthcoming. A lot was going through both of their minds when they got to the higher bridge, but Sidon certainly couldn't have expected what Link was about to blurt out now, in a hushed breath, even though they were far away from any listening ears. "So, I... I sort of... I recently... I officially lost my virginity!"

Sidon's eyes went wide and he covered his sharp-toothed mouth in shock. "W-What?! R-Really? Seriously? Wait, I-I need details! I need to shut up! You, you talk! Tell me everything!"

Link laughed, blushing but feeling a little less awkward about it now. "I mean, like, kind of? I've done some stuff before but... I'd never, like... Gone "all the way" with someone? And like...? I feel kind of ridiculous admitting this but I didn't really know the girl very long. It was kind of... Decided pretty quickly, probably too quickly, and yet... I still don't regret it, at all? Even though... I mean, I'd definitely like to visit her again someday and see how she's doing, but we kind of... Agreed that it was okay if that was where we split ways? I liked her a lot, enough to do -that-, anyways, but... I'm sure I wouldn't marry her or anything like that... Some people might think that's wrong, I know... Do you think that's wrong, Sidon? Making love to someone you're not totally in love with...?"

The prince blinked, blushed, and shook his head quite quickly. "Not at all... Actually... In complete candidness, I..."

Link blinked over at him curiously, and after a few coughs Sidon continued, "I'm also, erm... That is to say, I as well, have..."

Link smirked then, "Well, you ARE a prince after all, so I'm hardly surprised..."

Sidon sputtered at that, "S-So? You're the hero! So I'm not surprised either! But it's not really what you're probably thinking, just so you know... I mean, I liked the girls? Well enough to do my, er, duties with them, at least..."

"Duties?" Link repeated, but he kind of got it as soon as he said it...

Sidon explained anyways, "Regardless of who I might eventually chose to love enough to marry, the royal bloodline must continue. It's different when a female is going to be leader of course, then normally a single man must prove themselves worthy to be her consort. But when a male is to take leadership, well... Especially after what happened to Mipha, it was decided that it would be most fortuitous if I had at least a few spare heirs..."

"Oh wow..." Link gave a little whistle. "A few huh? You're even more of a manly stud than I am..."

"Oh hush!" Sidon blushed harder, though he was still grinning toothily, he tried to hide it modestly at least, shielding his face with a hand. "Your affair was probably a lot more romantic than mine! Mine were... Kind of awkward for the most part... Mostly business, not especially romantic, but, er... P-Pleasurable enough, I suppose...?"

Link quirked a brow at him, clearly not convinced. It was just as obvious that Sidon wasn't really convinced either. "My affair wasn't terribly romantic, just enough, but to be honest, my partner's mind was more on procreation too... So I get it, Sidon. It would be nice to someday find that person that makes your heart beat faster than others..." He admitted. "But there's nothing wrong with worrying about the practical matters first, either. So, um... Do you mind me asking then...? How, erm... How many...?"

Sidon flushed but got the idea pretty quick. "Ah... Three... Father and his advisers told me that at least three would be best... My father was told when he was young to make at least "A heir and a spare", turns out the spare was needed, so... They felt it would be best to be careful, in these especially dangerous and worrisome times, and produce an extra-extra spare... The eggs are incubating now, and will for another year..."

"I don't fault them for being prudent." Link mentioned. "There's just not as much time for ceremony nowadays, fewer people to attend them anyways... I think its better to just let you do your duty and then let you worry about taking your time to find someone you really love... Don't you?"

Sidon nodded right away, but he somehow seemed unsure still. "It's just... I guess I worry that even though I've done what was expected of me... I still worry that what I may someday want for myself, may still fall short of their expectations or cause them to be disappointed in me..."

Well that was unexpected. And seemed on the surface unlikely. But Link trusted his friend had reason to worry so, and waited patiently for him to admit the matter. He eventually did so, but only with his eyes cast out onto the domain and away from Link's gaze, which he just couldn't face right now. "Being with the Zoran women... It was nice, but... It was... Kind of boring? I don't mean to insult my females of course, they were the most beautiful of the eligible women presented to me! But... That's... Kind of what confuses me? Why would I not be attracted to the most beautiful of my people's females...?"

He quickly realized what he had just admitted and quickly tried to back-track, "I mean-I AM attracted to them, it's just, that is-!"

Link rubbed the back of his neck for a moment. "Er... Well, I'm definitely most attracted to females, most of the time, but... Yanno... One time?" He couldn't believe he was about to admit this, to anyone... "Back when I was in training to be a knight? There was this slightly older knight in training that was SO jealous of me, because I kept showing him up and he used to be top of the class... Well, I thought it was just jealousy... But then one day? He backs me up against a wall, with a hand on the wall next to my head - I figure at first he's trying to intimidate me, right? Trying to pick a fight? But then out of nowhere he kisses me! I pushed him away at the time, told him never to speak of it again, and he never did, in fact from then on he was not-so-strangely obedient of me... I kind of feel bad about it now, but I was embarrassed and I didn't feel anything for him, I was just glad he didn't want to fight anymore... But, in all honesty? That kiss... It kind of still gives me a thrill, thinking about it..." He touched his lips and blushed, "I mean, I'm pretty sure I still like girls more! But it was definitely... Interesting. Definitely different..."

"Indeed!" Sidon grinned, rubbing the back of his neck nervously. "Interesting! Different! I like stuff like that too! And like, well... Not just the thought of other males... I kind of suspect... Um, well, that I might specifically like Hylian males..." He blushed a little harder but also got a little more serious at that, lowering his voice. "I won't ask you if you think it's odd because I already know it is, but please... At least don't think it's deviant! Or for any deviant reason. I know Hylians are generally much smaller than Zora but I don't think you look like children or anything like that! Definitely not! I'm only attracted to adult Hylian males! And maybe once an adult male Rito..."

Link quirked a brow at that, "...Blue guy who likes to sing a lot?"

"OH MY GOD HOW DID YOU KNOW THA-"

Link quickly shushed him, "Just a lucky guess, alright? Haha... And by the way, my apologies again about the situation with bringing that Sasan guy to Finley. I so seriously thought the guy was gonna have a laugh about the mistake and move on when he saw she was obviously a kid. What a creep he turned out to be... And don't worry, I would never for a minute think you would behave like a guy like THAT just because you like other species... I suppose you already heard the rumors about me and Mipha from the other Zora girls who had it out for me, and well... I doubt most of them are true, but a few of them might be... Are you bothered by that at all?"

Sidon was definitely red all over now, and darker red where he was normally already red... It took him a few extra minutes to formulate a response, even though he was normally so loud and excited about things. "I of course don't blame you for that fool, and thankfully we haven't seen him since... As for you and Mipha? I'm actually... Rather relieved to hear that at least some of the rumors about you and her were true... I'm glad my sister had such a close friend before she passed on. If anything... I should probably be bothered with myself..."

"Why?"

"...For still being so attracted to you, not just because you're a Hylian and a male, but also despite you having been involved with my sister..."

Link leaned against a nearby railing. "I guess I should be bothered with myself that I'm kind of attracted to you too, despite usually being more into Hylian females... But yanno? I'm kind of not that bothered by it right now... I'm kind of more curious than anything... I have to admit, that's probably all it is though, just curiosity..."

Sidon's breath caught for an extra second or two. "...Link? If I was okay... With us just being curious together, tonight.. Erm, that is, i-if I perhaps told you that I had a hidden den of my own nearby that the others know never to disturb me at... Would you perhaps feel inclined to continue this very interesting and curious conversation there...?"

Link's ears burned. He'd never done anything quite like this before. He'd never wanted to do something like this before, but right now? He really did... "...Ah, sure... Yeah, lets go."

They walked together, the extra wet domain a little misty but magically somehow never too cold. Past lavender bushes and coral saplings sparkling with dew to a cavernous den, dark and well hidden on the outside but illuminated with luminous stones inside. A desk and a bed had also been set up inside, a few other amenities the prince might need here and there, but for the most part somewhat purposefully sparse, since the place more or less only had a few specific purposes...

"I... Don't bring other people here often, just so you know." Sidon felt the need to mention. "I have a couple times before, but it's rare... And you're the first guy I've ever brought here at all..."

Link nodded. "I'm honored... Actually..." That sort of gave him an idea... "Since you've shared this special secret with me... I think I'd like to share a special secret with you too, Sidon. One almost no one else knows... But first I need you to turn around and wait a minute for me, okay?"

Sidon blinked in surprise and curiosity, and nodded, turning around as he was asked and waiting patiently as Link began to check through the inventory of his super compacted sheikah pack, the magical device that allowed him to store so many weapons and clothes away when needed. Gods only knew how the ancients did it and god he hoped it never broke on him because it was truly a godsend to his item-hoarding ass. Without the device he likely would have never bothered keeping more than one set of the Gerudo women's outfit... Let alone several, in different colors... Which he now anguished over for a few seconds. Pink was too much right now probably, blue matched his eyes really nicely but he usually wore that one and he wanted to give off a warmer impression... Hmm... Warm, and well, his partner was red, so... The red one it was!

So, putting on the red Gerudo sirwal, Link then shyly clasped his hands together and announced to his princely partner, "You can look now..."

The Zoran turned around, and his eyes went wide. "W-Wha...? L-Link...?" He wasn't really sure what to make of what he was seeing, but if the way his tights had just gotten tighter was any indication, he apparently liked what he was seeing, at least...

Feeling a bit girlishly modest in the outfit, Link rubbed the back of his neck. "It's what I had to wear to get into Gerudo Town... Urbosa used to let me come on certain special occasions, with permission in advance, but I must admit, it's a bit more convenient to just put this outfit on and get to just walk right in... I just kinda like how it feels, too? It's really soft and silky and breezy, it's nice to wear on a hot day... And, well... It makes me feel pretty? I know that's really weird of me..." He suddenly looked a little more self-aware, even with the sirwal covering his face, the doubt could clearly be seen in his eyes. "I know I was always meant to be a knight, a fighter. I'm supposed to protect the beauties, not try to be one of them... But nobody every really asked me, either? I'm still okay with being the knight who saves the beauties, most of the time... But sometimes, once in a great while, I just... Kind of get a little curious, about what it might be like..."

Sidon gulped thickly and nodded, "You... You definitely look different like that, Link! But... It really suits you, I think... I also think there's no reason one can't be a beauty and a fighter, because you clearly already are..." Grinning through his shyness, the color rose in his cheeks and belly until the only white on him anymore was in his now much too tight tights... "Is... Would it be okay if... C-Can I touch you while you're wearing that?" He finally blurted out, reaching up and loosening that cravat at his neck, which apparently was making him extra warm right now...

Link nodded demurely behind his face-covering. "I kind of wanted you to..." He admitted, tucking his hair behind one ear.

Sidon crept closer, knelt down, low enough to make them at eye level, then he slowly leaned in, until his smooth, wet skin fell against Link's lips... His skin was cool, and yet the feel of it sent a shiver through Link's belly that left him feeling increasingly hotter...

The same cool, slightly damp skin on his wide, strong hands smoothed over Link's shoulders, along his arms, to his belly... Shivers followed Sidon's every move, and Link let out an outright gasp as his fingers went under his silken top, each finding a nipple...

Link's eyes fluttered as the two nubs were gently pinched, and he moaned, clenching his legs together as the prince played with his body, pretending as the hero had asked him, Sidon asked him, "Do you want me to do this, Link? Do you like this? Playing a bit with you as I, ah, did with the others I've brought here before...?" He didn't want to accidentally insult the hero by outright calling him like a woman, not that such a thing should be considered an insult, he just wanted to be extra careful he understood what his partner had requested.

Link clammed up for a few seconds, then in a rush it all came out, "I mean-I'm with a prince tonight, right? And I've rescued various princesses before? People call me a 'hero', but if I'm just as important as the princess, then damn it, tonight I wanna be a princess just this once too!"

Sidon snorted at that. "...Admittedly I must admit, most princesses would know not to say something as unladylike as 'damn it', Princess Link~"

"...Well that's why I'm glad I'm not -really- a princess all the time and only want to play at it tonight. And for the record, in the future I'm fighting for, the princess can be as unladylike as she wants, whenever she wants." Link promptly pointed out and then declared, with a bit of pomp like a princess too.

Sidon outright laughed out loud at the sudden display of regal brattiness. "Very well! Then it shouldn't be a problem if I forget just a few of my manners now as I begin this all too tempting feast..."

Link blinked wide. Feast? Oh dear, it seemed like Sidon had been restraining a frenzy... His mouth went first for the hero's throat and shoulder, his mouth covering the entire area. He tried not to leave it purple at least, but it was nice and red when he was done lathering the area with that crazy big tongue. He was careful to avoid his teeth, at least, for the most part... By then he had pulled the sirwal top over Link's chest, nearly up to his neck and collar, and began to flick his thick, strong and long tongue over the tiny nubs, making the hero, or rather, his princess, begin to gasp and writhe...

Sidon had grasped his shoulders once more, a little tighter than before... "Hmm... Princess, I do believe I'll need a table to enjoy this gourmet spread..." He mentioned, before nearly effortlessly hoisting the hero up and carrying him over to the nearby prepared bed, a regular soft bed instead of an extra fancy water bed, but then considering what they were going to use it for, they would likely provide all the motion needed without any extra...

Once there he carefully laid the hero-princess onto the downy mattress, and after pausing a beat to remember, his hands went down to his own belt-line, where his form-fitting Zora trousers were fastened around his waist... There was apparently a time when the Zora had not worn them, and the King of Hyrule at that time had insisted they start wearing them. Prudish overbearing old fool...

Sidon peeled the skin-tight pants, colored his own natural colors and made to look basically as natural as possible and cover more or less nothing but genitals, Link almost wondered what the big deal was, why would the old King make them wear them, at least even in their OWN domain, maybe out and about was one thing, but its not like they had anything anyone else didn't-

OOOOKAY HAHA SCRATCH THAT SCRATCH THAT, HOW VERY WRONG HE WAS ABOUT THAT-He realized QUITE suddenly as Sidon pulled his pants the rest of the way, revealing, erm... An extra surprise that Link deeefinitely hadn't been anticipating...

Sidon must have noticed how Link's eyes had widened because he inquired, "We're you... Not aware...?"

NOPE. Not even HE had been aware of THAT? Link let out a shocked snort behind his face covering, "Y-You learn something new every day, I guess...?"

"...Will it be any kind of problem...?" The prince was thoughtful to ask before beginning, just in case.

Link paused just a moment before shaking his head, "It... Shouldn't be, I don't think? I mean, um... As long as it's agreed now... I mean, I might be into a few basic things, but probably no, uh, you know... P-Penetration..." He hesitantly admitted.

Sidon immediately snorted back, as if that should have been obvious, though he was also still just as extra red as Link was. "My intentions were to play with you Link, not torture you... Even if you came to bed boasting like a barbarian I would have advised you against -that-..."

"R-Right... So then, is there anything besides that... That you'd like to do...?" Link didn't really have any prepared fantasies for this scenario, maybe some people might but he was generally a pretty busy guy, and if he had time to think enough to touch himself he usually used it angsting over his failures instead. If not for other people making the move on the poor man who knows how repressed he'd be...

Sidon smiled down at him, a glint in his eyes. "Just lie back, my heroic princess... Let me... Reward your noble efforts..." Gods his heart was beating so fast just then Link could hear the huge organ banging against Sidon's chest... "I... I want to... W-Worship you..." He finally admitted, unable to restrain himself from connected his extra long, almost slightly serpentine tongue down on Link's nipples, twisting the slimy tip around them several times, making Link moan and roll his body from the pleasure. Goddesses, why were those two little things so sensitive... Link could only guess that, being male and being unable to understand childbirth, the nipples were what really connected men and women, even if men didn't "need" them in the sense that they didn't feed the children, but it certainly served as a good reminder that they weren't so different...

However that philosophical musing went right out the cave exit as soon as Sidon carefully reached his clawed hand inside of his Gerudo bottoms, loosening them and pulling them past his cock, down to his knees, rubbing it in his hand a bit while his long tongue left his nipples, traveled down the line of his abs to his belly and then his cock, standing rigid for him... Link's piece was pretty impressive for his size, for Hylian males in general, obviously the goddesses had blessed him within reason (like, he couldn't have it be so big that he wouldn't be able to swing his real sword around...) but of course... Compared to any part of Sidon, including his big thick tongue that was currently enveloping the entire length, it almost looked just slightly diminutive... Eh, but not really, since what Sidon was doing certainly made him not care about much of anything, certainly not what others would think or his own insecurities.

Because to the underworld with prejudices, and Link was sure now, anyone who had felt a Zora tongue would agree... It was literally too much, the way it wound around his entire length, then still managed to snake the tip down over his testes... Just resting at the base of his entrance, goddesses damn it Sidon, he had to be doing that on purpose, right...?

He technically wasn't penetrating it, but... He was rubbing it just the slightest... Most of Sidon's focus was on his cock of course, but Link could definitely feel he was being teased...

Admittedly... It made him a little curious... But he was also a little too embarrassed to just outright admit THAT... Still though. Maybe there was another way to sate his curiosity...

"S-Sidon..." He gasped deeply in his throat. "Ungh... This is... Amazing, but... It might be a bit too much, I might, y-you know... Lose it..." He admitted in a sigh, "Sooner than you, anyways, and I'm not used to that... P-Plus I'd feel bad for any Hylian lady that tried to share her tongue with me if you blew my mind with that thing..." He snorted and then outright laughed, and Sidon had to pull his tongue back quickly just so he could laugh too... And while he was a little distracted himself, Link slyly suggested, "Here... Why don't you... C-Come closer to me...?"

Sidon pulled his tongue back in, sliding it up and over Link's cock and slipping back into his mouth... Then he smirked, slowly stretching it into a sharky grin... He seemed to already have what Link had in mind, on his mind too. But of course he was careful to make sure, "Like this, right...?" He inquired aloud, while at the same time leaning in, over Link, completely covering him with his much larger frame, he aligned his first cock up against Link's slightly smaller cock, and his second cock between the cleft of Link's ass, while pulling the Gerudo bottoms the rest of the way off...

Some flutter of a noise escaped Link as he felt Sidon's strong rods press up to him in the near-darkness, little more than their faces illuminated to each other now at this closeness. So Link could see mostly a lot of red, the red of Sidon's skin, and little else, besides the white of his gleaming teeth. "Nngh, is this alright? This is how a lot of Zora females like to do it, you know..."

Well that certainly planted a few ideas in Link's head... Was it that Zora females liked one in each entrance? Or one in the first entrance and rubbing up against the other? Either way, hot... And also, there was the alternative, that some few Zora females might prefer two in one... Fuck that was strangely hot too, Link couldn't help but think, while at the same time pumping his and Sidon's cock together with his hands, panting beneath his mask... "Mmm, aah... Tell me more, my prince..." He was probably being a little obvious but screw it he was curious...

Sidon obliged him quite happily, husking into his ear with a heated breath, "Hmm... Some ladies might want to only rub... Some might want it one place but not the other... And some few girls care to try it in both! But that's rather rare, admittedly, haha..."

Well, it was pretty obvious why... But then Sidon, he liked guys, so... Link flushed but couldn't help but follow up with his curiosity, "Sidon...? Do you think... Do you think you like guys more because you like to give, or get...?"

Sidon snorted, apparently expecting something similar to a question like this at some point. "Quit frankly, Link? I'm into the thought of it both ways... But to be quite honest with you? I think your urge to role-play here only makes it more obvious you're more into females... You've been kind of focused on the female aspect of it, which isn't really bad, like I already said I was fine with us just being curious together tonight, just... Makes it obvious what's most on your mind, haha..."

Link blushed harder than ever at that. "Erm... Hehe, I guess it does, sorry... Still though, thanks for this Sidon, and... I still -am- curious though... I don't know why, but... I-I'm kind of more curious than ever..." He admitted with a deep blush, one of his hands staying to stroke their cocks together, the other reached deep down to Sidon's second cock and his ass, feeling at the conical but slightly bumpy cock... Slightly skinnier at the tip... It might actually be possible to...

Sidon had gone rather still... He was apparently waiting for Link, the Hylian suddenly realized with a much deeper blush... Waiting to see if he'd really do it... And hell, it couldn't hurt worse than any other type of damage he'd ever taken had, could it...?

Swallowing against a thick lump in his throat, Link felt for the tip of Sidon's piece blindly with his fingertips, pressed it up against this slippery, sweaty entrance apprehensively. He kind of waited then for a second, for Sidon to make a move after that, but Sidon was waiting completely on him, and with his breath caught in his throat...

Face red and almost holding his breath himself, Link pressed the tip in a little further and-Oh, holy goddesses... It hurt, a little more than even he expected, but also, what in all the world was that...

Something deep inside, just past the pain, just barely being tickled at but still made the current sting worth it... Link pumped the cocks in his hands a bit more, shifted his ass in the air to accommodate for a shift in positioning, and then quietly requested of his partner, "A-Aah... M-More... J-Just a little more..." He hesitantly clarified, still wary of the dull ache.

Sidon was quite wary of it too though, and moved very carefully and slowly, no sudden movements. He had been holding his breath all the while, but at a certain point, about halfway in, he had to stop and let it out in a great exhale. "This is as far as I should go, I'm sure..." He announced needlessly, as they could both tell even just halfway was almost too much for Link...

Almost too much, that sharp pain was as literal a pain in the ass as anything could get, and yet... Link shivered, shuddered, pumped his hand up and down their shafts together faster and tighter, adding his other hand back to both their rods and letting Sidon take over elsewhere...

Gripping the meat of both buttocks in each hand, Sidon restrained himself, making only shallow thrusts, watching Link's face for pleasure and pain, he kept himself only going just far enough to keep that blissful look on Link's face, kept there by the stroking in time of his cock. Not exactly ladylike indeed but Princess Link didn't seem to care about keeping that up anymore anyways, throwing his head back against the bed as he felt Sidon's cock begin to throb against his own...

The cock inside of him, well, obviously that mess was more or less contained... Less so, actually, Link soon realized, feeling a bit slip out as Sidon himself slipped out as well, cumming more against his ass than in it at that point... And the cock against his own well, that was only in the perfect place to completely cover Link's entire chest and face with the results of their pleasure... Sheesh. Link had some pretty impressive spurts too but Zora were something else entirely... Of course that in addition to Link's and ah... Damn. Link and his pretty red sirwal were left more than a little messy after it was all over and done with.

Link took a few gasps of air first, but then he quickly began to fret over his clothes, "Goddesses I did not think that one through... This mess is gonna be impossible to explain unless I take a dip in the river first..." Normally not a big deal, but it was night now, the water was chillier than it usually was now.

Except Sidon smirked especially big at that, "Worry not, my friend! My den's amenities have us covered!" He explained, getting off of Link and showing him around a corner and through a passageway, which led to a private hidden hot spring, illuminated by more luminous stones and somehow heated naturally deep underground. It provided the perfect spot to wash everything sticking to them, and also a good place for introspection while they washed. Link seemed quieter than normal, at least next to Sidon, who was humming while he worked on helping Link wash his chest and hair and back and basically everywhere because sheesh the goddesses made the Zora Prince an absolute beast in bed... It was definitely tempting to want to do this again, but... Link had to be honest with Sidon now. It was only fair...

"This was really amazing, Sidon..." He spoke up as his host began to wash his back, no longer face to face. "A lot of fun... I wish I could say what one might normally say, you know, "Lets do this again sometime", but..."

Sidon immediately nodded and patted his back in understanding. "Link, I already told you you didn't have to worry about that! I do wish you were a little more into guys than girls after all, but it's okay, I'm more than happy we got to have even just share this night together!"

Link nodded too, but forged on despite Sidon's insistence. "I know, me too, it's just... If things were different-? I mean I know I shouldn't go down that road at all but IF things were just a little different I could see myself coming back to do this with you again... B-But, as you know... As many people know, or come to find in time... I'm sort of always going to be drawn back to a certain girl, or a certain woman... If not for that, I just want you to know, I don't bear any shame or prejudices towards the love we just shared, for any reason... It's only because of my prior engagements that I can't stay or come back..."

"Link I can hardly complain about the same fates taking you from me that took you from my sister and every other woman... I mean, I feel bad for you, actually... But more than that, I'm impressed. I really respect what you're going through, Link... Well, in any case, it looks like we're clean now... We should probably get back to the others too after we clean these clothes..."

Link hurried to interrupt him there before he lost too much hope. "You know, though, Sidon? This adventure has been really fun... I know I have to get back to more practical things, and I have a feeling Flaxel, Canolo and Palme are ready to get home soon, but if you're in the mood for an adventure... I kinda get the feeling that Oliff might be in the mood for another one, maybe...?"

They both gave each other a shark-like grin at that...

After they were done with the washing and changing back into more appropriate attire, the two men walked back to the Domain, where the King was just stumbling through the last of his speech. Oliff, bless his inebriated heart, was the only one who had the willpower to still be fully awake, forcing his eyes wide through the tale out of respect and looking even more awake than the King who was telling it... Flaxel was still 'awake' but just barely, nodding off with her head slipping into her hands, and Canolo and Palme were fast asleep altogether, their heads leaning on each others, their fingers intertwined...

Aww~ That was so cute Link had to at least get a picture first. He felt a little bad about it, but then he began to jostle them awake, telling them, "Come on you guys~ You don't wanna fall asleep on the hard ground, even if it is pretty~ Not when our Zora hosts have graciously prepared us all a complimentary water bed tonight~! Seriously, you guys have got to check these things out, they are the BEST~~~!" Link nearly squee'd at that, mostly to wake them up, but also because he was so excited for the rare extra pampering. This was the kind of bed he dreamed about in his wildest dreams~ (And no wonder it was the only kind of bed he could sleep 100 years in... Well probably the only kind of bed he could sleep that long in...)

Canolo and Palme took a little while longer to wake, but Flaxel perked up a bit then, "Water bed...? Link you know I trust you and our Zora guests but can us Hylians really fall asleep in a water bed...?"

Link laughed. "Trust me, just come check it out~"

They finally got the other two up and headed to the inn together, except for Oliff, who went to join Sidon for one more night-time stroll and to chat before retiring to his own bed later... Link smiled but gave it no further mind, showing the sleepy others to their beds, where they were just as amazed as he knew they'd be.

Palme laid a hand on it and jiggled it. "No way... It really is a bed with water! But the water is trapped in the bed! This is really okay to sleep on?"

"As long as you make sure to take off every sharp weapon first, of course." Link added, and they nodded, taking care to take off anything sharp on their persons before getting into the beds.

Canolo cooed right away, "Oh goddesses... It's so jiggly! It's like getting to be one of you guys for once, always using my jiggles for a pillow-But now I get to sleep on the jigglies!"

Everyone settled down soon after that, full of wine and good food as they were, the comfy bed soon got to them. Link stayed up in his bed just long enough to see Sidon escort Oliff back to his bed too about twenty minutes later or so, and then slipped off to sleep himself...

He drifted off through the darkness of dreamless sleep for a while... But before he knew it, he had found himself in one of those unnervingly familiar and yet unfamiliar dream-like places... He was in some kind of ruins. Old houses, wrecked and burned years ago, and then rained upon and rotted over year after year since then... And in the very midst of that mossy, slightly flooded forgotten mess, was a young man... One who looked an awful lot like Link, or some version of him, except...

Clothes... The style of a type of clothing could sometimes give an indication as to the hero's place in time or history, but... This one was naked... More than that, he seemed... Hollow. Empty. Ashamed. He greatly unnerved Link, who fought the inclination to be outright scared of him. He was a little too pathetic-looking to be scared of, even if one should reasonably know he had the power of a hero, he somehow looked so beaten sitting there, even more than Oliff and his companions had been before in Gerudo, stripped of not just clothes but all semblance of honor...

He wasn't especially eager to, but Link approached the other man, kneeling next to where he was huddled in the rain. He was inside of a house, but... Well, there was no roof on it, so he was getting rained on... He didn't seem to notice or care about the rain, but he acknowledged Link, looking up at him slowly.

"Who are you...?" Link finally asked, curious but wary of the answer.

The other man looked at him more closely then. Something close to a spirit returned to his face, but it didn't make him look less miserable. "...I am the one who deserved to be forgotten. I am the one I wish HAD been completely forgotten... I am the Defeated..."

Link's gut turned in knots at that single, simple word... The word and all it meant, and the horrible realization at the sight of that hero's nakedness, exactly what it meant... For a moment, Link wondered if the spirit was mad or offended by him or his actions somehow, but it was quickly apparent this spirit was not a vengeful one...

Still, there was a weighty silence between them then. The Defeated One had something to say, but was in no apparent hurry to say it. Link could feel he was still being addressed, but the Other was just staring right at him and yet off into the distance, right through him...

Finally he mentioned, "I apologize... It has been so long since I saw another... So long since I even wanted to... So much longer until I will again... I just wanted to sit beside you for a moment, and bask in your presence. The presence of a true hero. One that I believe will not fail, like I did..."

Link didn't want to ask what he was about to ask... But he knew he was here for a reason, and there wasn't very many reasons besides the obvious. "What do you want from me...?"

The Defeated hung his head. Curled his legs in to cover his body, and his shame... And began to explain. "What you did tonight... I... Always wondered if there was a way such a thing could have been done without so much pain... Thank you for showing me that..."

Link's stomach dropped. Defeated. Defeated. Defeated. The word struck down from his mind into the pit of his stomach like awful deafening thunder and deadly shocking lightning... He suddenly just wished he could call this one the Dead and Forgotten Hero. He suddenly realized they both wished he could just call him that...

Link rushed to tell him, felt compelled to try and console him, "It wasn't your fault... Y-You tried your best... Did everything you were supposed to...?"

He almost hoped there was some mistake that could have led to this fate, one he could avoid... But the Defeated answered back, frustratingly simple, "To my knowledge I did everything I could...? P-Perhaps I did lack courage, or something else, but... For the most part, I was simply... Overpowered."

The Defeated one turned to look right at him then, with sunken, lifeless eyes... "Seven years... And still too late... Or maybe too soon... Just be wary. I know your body and mind needs rest and fortification too... You needed someone tonight, and that's alright... I've needed someone like you for longer than I can say... Now someone else, somewhere else, needs you much more... And you must go to them right away. Leave at the next morning light, head north... That is my advice to you, to repay you... To thank you for what you've given me..."

Link had handed him nothing, so he curiously inquired, "Given you... What?"

The spiritless spirit looked up at him, but avoided his eyes. "...A good memory to block out the other ones."

The naked visage suddenly faded into a skeleton before his eyes, and then that skeleton crumbled into dust and was blown away with a sudden wind that Link hadn't really felt rush past him... He woke up with a start in his water bed, which jiggled in response, calming him, reminding him of where he really was...

It wasn't quite morning... Still dark. Link let himself rest until the sun started to rise, then he got out of bed and started getting his things together. He was trying to be quiet, but he still managed to wake up Flaxel and Oliff, the lighter sleepers, and their stirring soon woke up Palme and Canolo, who were eager to wake up and have another day or two of fun anyways. They all assumed Link was too. But then they noticed Link was getting himself all put together, so... They kind of put it together too.

Oliff was the first to mention it, "Do you... Need to be moving along now, Link?"

He nodded back quickly, "This has been a ton of fun you guys... But I feel like I should be getting back to more serious matters. By all means though, I'm sure the Zora would like you guys to stay at least a few more days to a week probably, right Oliff? Sidon mentioned that to you right?"

For some reason the slightest bit of pink rose to Oliff's ears... But like a pro, he ignored it and answered easily, "Yes, he said that we can stay as long as we like, and that when the others are ready to head home, he will have no less than two Zora guards go with them to protect them and bring tokens of goodwill from the Zora to Kakariko and Hateno Villages."

Flaxel beamed a grin at that. "Woohoo! We'll be arriving home with a royal procession! Everybody's gonna know we had an amazing adventure!"

Oliff nodded with a small smile at that. "Well... You all will, though so you know, you'll have to meet up with me later. I've learned so much from Link along this trip, I decided I don't want to stop learning quite just yet... And last night Prince Sidon generously offered to have me accompany him to Rito territory, to bring tributes to the Rito as well as to study their styles of combat. I believe it will be a great learning experience as well as a true honor. After traveling with him for another year or so, perhaps then I will return to my home just beyond Kakariko... Will you visit me then, my friends?"

That little speech took a lot out of Oliff, especially the end of it, outright calling the people he had been traveling with and protecting his friends... They all shared a warm smile and nodded several times to that.

Flaxel mentioned, "Well, I'll visit you anyways, Oliff... Though Palme might've put a bun in Canolo's cooking pot by then~!"

Canolo blushed heavily at that, though she was still grinning, since now that her first dream of having an adventure was over, she was now focused on her second dream. "H-Hey!"

Palme had to snort and add too though, "Admit it Canolo, you can barely travel on those short legs as is... Once you're pregnant you'll barely be able to waddle around the village!"

They all had a laugh over that, and then after that, Canolo and Flaxel got up and joined Link in his bed, giving him a big, grateful, jiggly hug together. Palme and then even Oliff soon joined the group embrace, all of them telling the hero they'd never forget him and to visit them again as soon as he could. Canolo especially made sure to mention to him in her final squeeze, "I just know you'll save your princess someday, Link... Keep getting stronger protecting us shorties until then~"

Sidon then gave him an extra big squeeze of a hug when he got to him, and a strong, hard clap on the back. "MY AMAZING FRIEND-! I am always sorry to see you have to go again! I eagerly look forward to the day when we can sit and sup together again, hopefully more at length! May we both have many interesting new tales to tell each other and hopefully not too many scars to accompany them by then!"

Link smirked and patted him on the back simply as they parted, trying to hide his rising blush. "Yeah, totally - Bring our new friend and our blue friend with ya next time too, your majesty~"

Sidon blushed brighter than ever then, especially at the implication behind that last parting little joke... "H-HEY! Th-That was too cool! Not fair, Link, you can't just look that cool every time you leave!"

But Link just shrugged, "Sorry, but yes I can~"

And he totally did.

He wasn't about to go out not looking cool ever again...

OoOoOoOoOoOoOoOoO


	4. Wild Rider Rhondson

At the advice of that strange, sad, dream-like version of himself, Link had decided to abandon the beaten path for a while... He had been following the path long enough, after all, helping his new friends find a better adventure. Now he felt like a bit of climbing. He'd eaten a few too many of Canolo's crepes and needed to work off come of those calories before his climbing skills were reduced to hers too... Bless her heart those were the best cakes and crepes he'd ever eaten though. When he freed Zelda he was going to find Canolo again and treat the princess to the best cake in the land...

In the meantime though... He scaled over the mountains surrounding the Zora, to the mountain where he knew that lynel had been before - Just about Mikau and Lulu Lake, what was the weird name of that mountain? He kinda just marked it with a skull at the time to indicate the Lynel, but ah-Ploymus? What a weird name, who the heck looked at this mountain forever ago and went "Yup. That's Ploymus Mountain", what the actual heck ancestors...

Anyways he decided he ought to pass over there again, to make sure the lynel he's whopped there before hadn't had a mate or child - And looky looky who had a boyfriend~ Or girlfriend...?

...Lionfriend. Monsterfriend. He was just gonna go with one of those.

So regardless of gender he beat it's ass all over the mountain until he finally managed to bomb it into oblivion, probably was a den with a little one he'd have to come back for later if it didn't starve, but until then he had other matters to attend to. The last time he was here he was most concerned with fighting that lynel, which at the time was much tougher, and getting some of the shock arrows he needed, but this time, he noticed his sheikah sensor was going off.

He'd already solved the shrine by the path leading up to Tarrey Town... The sensor had to be pointing him somewhere hidden. Sure enough after scrounging around in a nearby grotto he managed to find it, the 'Ke'nai Shakah' Shrine. Determined to find everything else hidden that he hadn't found he went on a scrounge for it. Some islands were nearby, so screw it, he decided to go for a swim, and lo and behold, another shrine on the island. From there he could see some weird spiral shape that of course seemed unnatural. He had spotted that before but he was already searching for the Katosa Aug Shrine, the East Akkala Stable and the Akkala Ancient Tech Lab at that time, so he kinda passed over it then.

He also then remembered a creepy Labyrinth he'd seen from the Akkala Tech Lab last time but passed over, figuring at the time it was too creepy, he instead opted to go down to work on the Tutsuwa Nima Shrine, the Ze Kasho Shrine, the South Akkala Stable and Akkala Tower, beating all the flying guardians around there, and marveling how the damn South Akkala Stable managed to survive there so long after picking one of the worst spots in Hyrule to try to build a spot to live. Literally right next to the things trying to kill you guys? What the hell...

But this time he went out to the Lomei Island Labyrinth, and it was indeed creepy, but also hardly anything he couldn't handle, and it actually turned out to be really neat too - Would probably be neater next time with Zelda to accompany him, but at least he found the shrine there for now. And from there, he went on to find another shrine at Skull Lake, got some Gorons to realize he was awesome at Gut Check Rock, then looked at Death Mountain before him... And went, well, why not. What the hell.

This was actually the last major area he'd yet to brave through... After recovering just enough memories around and rediscovering the lands of Hyrule, he'd first conquered the Gerudo territory. Since it was so damn hot there, he was in no mood to tough through the heat of the desert again. Instead he went right for the Hebra region to free the Rito. Urbosa's Fury and Revali's Gale made him a hell of a lot stronger, from then on enemies couldn't even catch him let alone beat him. And if it did catch him it better literally have a frickin laser beam attached to its head or he was just gonna fry them back...

From there he saved Sidon and his people and then went to the beach, and yadda yadda we know the rest. He'd kind of been resting on his laurels the last year, to be honest. Still working on shrines and getting stronger with each one, but also very obviously ignoring the really hard part coming up... UGH. THE LAVA. THE HEEEEAT...!

But... That mountain wasn't going anywhere, and the Gorons, overbearing as they could be, still needed help too... So he loaded up on the heat-resistant items and tackled that old mountain. It was hot as hell. It was a pain in the ass. He barely survived that ridiculous goddamn volcano Talus, gods almighty had to have helped him through that and then the Divine Beast to boot... But he did it. SOMEHOW...

And now... He very much needed a rest again. He wanted to deny it, wanted to charge into the nearby Great Hyrule Forest that he knew contained the final secret he needed to beat the Calamity... But that Forest was imposing, ancient, tricky... He knew deep down, he needed to fortify himself before taking on THAT...

So after selling all his gems to the lady in Goron City for a pretty rupee, he traveled down the mountain again and back to more reasonably heated territories... But still not yet ready to stick to the beaten path, he instead climbed up Eldin Tower and glided from there on his parasail over to the Akkala Bridge Ruins, right next to the Akkala Citadel and the Tower, which looked so pretty in the distance he just really felt compelled to ride over there for some strong reason, and even though he had no real reason to do so, he went with his gut and went ahead. When he was getting close to the bridge though, he realized with a grave start that someone was backed up against a deadly drop by a Moblin...

Pulling out an arrow mid-flight, he managed to shoot the Moblin right in the back of the head, hollering at the other fighter, "DODGE TO THE SIDE!"

Thankfully the other young man had good instincts and he did as he was told just in time. The Moblin was struck and fell forward dead into the long drop to the ditch where it had just been trying to doom this young man, who breathed a deep sigh of relief as Link ran up next to him.

The young man thanked him... But his words almost didn't reach Link at first. He was so amazed at how familiar he looked... Nell he said his name was, and he was here trying to pay respects to a kin that died at this battle, likely a grandfather or grand-uncle or something... A kin that looked like this knight, who died at this citadel long ago...

Link slowly mused to the other young man, "Your kin... Was his name Nilm?"

"Huh? How did you know...?"

The knight who kissed him, the knight he had pushed away... It seems he had died nobly at this place long ago...

Link prayed with the young man, and then escorted him to the nearest stable. He was rather attractive, Link could now admit to himself at least... But he also immediately began flirting with Lonni and the other girls at the stable, so Link left well enough alone with that.

Instead he went on to chat with a group of Rito beauties that were also at the stable, which seemed a bit strange so he went to check on them and see if they needed any help. One had feathers the color of canaries and sunshine, and the other girl, her best friend, was a gorgeous green. Last among them was the rarest color besides white, was petal pink, and the they were accompanying her to meet an agreed betrothed...

Deep red and raven-black feathered Rito were most common, Link had been told once. White and bright colored feathers were the rarest, but also not particularly desired in all honesty. Unless one was very skilled at combat or otherwise stealthy or lucky enough to be related to someone of high status, a lot of the bright colored Rito tended to get picked off by monsters while out looking for a mate that would accept them for their disadvantage in this deadly world, and until the world became safer that would continue to be the case, unfortunately... Knowing that's what these gals were looking for, Link asked about where they were heading and of all places they were trying to find Tarrey Town.

The three girls had been talking through a Rito mail system for a few years and had decided to make the trip out now to see if any of the three liked Fyson enough to settle down with him in Tarrey Town. Their Pink friend was pretty sure she liked him best from their correspondence, but they were quite hopeful that at least one of them would like Fyson enough when they arrived in person, and the others would protect each other until it was decided with finality. They'd gotten pretty close, but the nearby flying Guardian (Link thought he had taken out most of them last time but he guessed one or two had been hovering elsewhere...) had spooked them into landing at the stable for a rest instead. They regained their confidence when Link told them how close they were though, and after taking care of that new Guardian too, they gladly flew with him as he glided the rest of the way over to the little nearby town.

It was between afternoon and evening-time when his little group arrived, so basically everyone was up and about with the hustle of the day, though for Tarrey Town that generally meant sitting bored next to your wares most of the day hoping that someone would pass by. Same as most other towns and villages too, but more so for one like Tarrey Town. So when anyone arrived it was a cause for celebration. But when Link, the man who more than anyone put this town together, arrived back in town, with three female Rito in tow? It was practically a field day, especially for Fyson, who had been eagerly awaiting the group of females he had been writing to and rushed over to give them a deep respectful bow before the girls smothered him in much more informal feathery hugs.

Every other time Link had dropped in, as soon as Hudson saw him he gave him a warm shouted greeting. It was clear to Link this time though, that just before arriving, Hagie had been sharing some less than warm and friendly words with Hudson off to the side of his house. The founder of the town hadn't argued back with the other man, and simply let him stalk back away to his house. When Link came up Hudson didn't mention it to him either, he instead greeted his old friend and benefactor warmly and a bit loudly, as if to cover up whatever had just happened before that, "AH! My good friend Link, welcome back to Tarrey Town! Do come, come! What a sight for sore eyes, we haven't had a visitor in a few days! Oh but they do come here and there! Words been getting out about ol' Tarrey Town and we've started getting a few regulars, even! I'm absolutely SURE-" He seemed to stress this now a bit more loudly, as if wanting this part to be overheard. "In just another year or two tops, more people will come settle on the good land surrounding Tarrey Town too, and we'll expand this into a proper settlement indeed!"

Hagie harumphed from his porch. He was listening like Hudson had hoped but he was never one to mince words or be easily impressed. He was painfully blunt, like a sledgehammer. "MAYBE, if my Hunnie isn't the only child still in this town by then, Hudson, but if not I'll have to take her back somewhere she can be around other children... It's just not healthy for her to grow up without any other children around!"

Hudson sighed, but he said nothing to contest Hagie's concerns. Didn't want to chase the impulsive man away when he was one of the few that had dared to come to settle in his town, and the only one so far that had brought a child into the town... Besides his abundance of valuables he was considered rich in this town for having Hunnie alone. His daughter was almost considered like a little princess here.

Link looked over at Rhondson... Her belly was flat, tight with muscle, not the least bit round as it was clear when he left she had been hoping to be... Link's heart gave a squeeze for her. It probably hurt bad enough without Hagie rubbing it in like that...

Politely he lifted his eyes up to meet hers. "I, um... Hope you all have been well?" He asked, just a little awkwardly.

Rhondson nodded tensely. Everyone was kinda tense, until thankfully the green Rito girl suddenly and loudly announced, "BRR! My, my, I guess up here on this mesa it can get cold as Winter sometimes!"

The pinkest and most bubbly of the girls followed up, "But yanno Fyson, colorful girls like us..."

And her yellow friend chirped to finish for her, "Are looking for a nice warm Spring Fling~!"

Then the green gal, the biggest and toughest looking of the three, began to push them all at once to Fyson's front door with her wings. "So come on now, lets all go inside and get to know each other better~!"

Someone whistled after Fyson before he disappeared back into his house, "Don't do anything we wouldn't do!" That person definitely wasn't Link, shh...

After that Hudson quickly rallied behind Link, ushering him to his home with his hands behind his back. "Hoho! Come on my friend, come with me - We have some gourmet meat stewing in the kitchen and a bowl with your name on it!"

They literally had carved a new wooden bowl for him, painted it blue like his eyes and tunic, and in black ink had added his name. They had carved an extra chair and an extra bed too, but Link supposed those were meant for the currently as of yet nameless green and pink bowl set that was waiting untouched at the top of a cabinet...

Leaving his pack of supplies at the door, Link proceeded to 'make himself at home', as he knew Hudson wanted him to, kicking off his shoes at the entrance and removing his Hylian hood and hanging it by the door. "Looks like Tarrey Town has really taken off lately..."

Hudson chuckled under his breath, "Hohoho, you're too kind... I know you noticed as anyone with eyes would. The progress on the town itself has done well lately, but... The population, I'm afraid, hasn't grown at all since Hagie's family moved... It's just a shame... It's really as ideal a spot for a town as you could hope for-" Besides sitting very precariously atop a rock that could be taken down someday with an earthquake or a laser beam, BESIDES that. But hey if Akkala Stable was still around then Tarrey Town should have a chance too... "There's plenty of resources, we've got enough wood ready to make more houses on the outskirts as soon as anyone wants to move, there's always more than enough food for everyone, especially since you cleared the path for ingredient merchants to get through where those Guardians used to prowl - We just need more mouths to feed!"

Link nodded graciously to Rhondson as she ladled him a spoonful of meat stew into his bowl, seasoned with regional herbs and vegetables. Good food could be found anywhere, true. But Tarrey Town Stew was something special... But then again. It was likely Rhondson's traditional Gerudo cooking it that made it taste so special, not just being from Tarrey Town.

He added as he blew onto the bowl, "I've been mentioning the town to travelers I pass by in my journey... A lot of them say Akkala is just a little too far and remote to travel to. A lot of people are scared to even go outside their towns. I think once enough of the Guardians are gone, people will travel more again. I've already seen that be the case in some regions, it's just a matter of time before people make it out here. A couple people were interested though?" He mentioned, so not to bring their spirits down. "I gave them the best directions I could, but maybe they just got lost, or distracted along the way... Hopefully they just found somewhere else to settle, that happens a lot..."

The memory of the knight trapped on the bridge, about to plummet to his death gave him pause. He really hoped those wandering travelers managed to find a home, or at least no trouble... But there wasn't much he could do either, since he had no idea where to look for them now. He just had to keep moving and keep doing what he could, and hope for the best for everyone...

"Ah well..." Hudson nodded acceptingly. "Thank you for doing what you can, Link. Goddesses know Tarrey Town would have never even made it this far without you."

"I'm always happy to help." Link replied, much in a 'don't worry about it' kind of way. People often worried about repaying him for favors but that was often more a burden than not. It was always cool to get something you needed for helping someone else, but carrying around junk could get him killed, too, and trying to repay favors could get other people killed.

But Hudson insisted, "Really, Link, thank you. I wouldn't even be able to complain about how good I've got it if not for you... I know people can't always get everything they want, but... Well, this isn't exactly something I can just give up on. The town just won't grow without new members, but... I just feel sorry for Rhondson-dear. It doesn't make any sense why such a lively and strong lady like her wouldn't be able to produce a child, especially when everyone knows, "A Gerudo can make a girl out of any man who can bend just enough to bow in respect to the Gerudo ways." That's what they say in Gerudo Town, right Rhondson?"

Link looked over at Rhondson and shared an amused snort and a knowing smirk with her about that. That saying... Meant something completely different depending on whether you were in or outside of Gerudo Town... But, Hudson technically did have it correct from his end, so Link of course didn't mention it...

Rhondson of course didn't tell Hudson either, who carried on, not much interested in the stew in his bowl, even forgetting to keep his elbows off the table as he sighed wistfully over it, "Well then it stands to reason that she should have at least been able to produce a daughter with how long we've been married... And a daughter would be just as welcome as a son, trust me! But there's no doubt in my mind that it's not my strong, young wife that's the problem, no, it must be me... It couldn't be helped in a world like this, but I must have waited too long..."

Ah, darn... This was awkward. But Link sympathized with him too. It wasn't a small thing to worry about. Everything he built relied on someone else inheriting it. And since people were reluctant to travel, the only other way to make the population grow was the old fashioned way... But, that wasn't working very well either, it seemed...

Seemed like a weird thing to bring up to him, he thought, but maybe it was just a sign of how much they'd come to trust him, and how much it had been weighing on their minds. So, after a bit of an awkward silence, Link wracked his mind to think of something to say to them, to console them, "Well... Um..." Actually, this sucked... He had no idea what to say to console them right now. There's always adoption? That would sound uncaring, and besides that, impractical. You can't exactly go looking for an orphan without looking like a weirdo, and even though they certainly still popped up, they were always taken in by their own communities or nearby ones. Children were a rare commodity and the notion of sending one away just because they had no blood ties with anyone was ridiculous, in fact that would just be more reason to keep them. Even if one ever was available for adoption by some miracle, no one would ever endanger themselves or the child to take them to Tarrey Town, they would find someone closer, so... There was actually nothing he could really say... So, he wisely shut his mouth and stopped trying, and simply hung his head in disappointment with them. "Sorry..."

Hudson allowed this, but it seemed to quickly annoy Rhondson, who apparently didn't like being pitied, or for time to be wasted 'beating around the bush'... "Oh for the love of the goddesses... Hudson. Would you just get to the point and ask him..."

...Wait. What now...?

Link suddenly had the feeling he had overlooked something, somewhere...

Hudson, however, seemed to be quite fine beating around the bush, nervously poking his fingers together until Rhondson sighed and looked over to Link, who was looking between the two of them for an explanation. "I'm sorry Link, this is a bit ridiculous... And... You should know, before we even ask you, that we have asked another fellow before... A very nice young man named Stamm, you might have gotten cooking ingredients from him before? Well... It so happens that Hudson and I were... Acquiring a certain special ingredient from Stamm, just a few times, here and there... But dear Stamm, and bless him he deserves it, found a nice young woman to marry, and asked to discontinue his services in order to devote himself to her. And unfortunately... Though we got a couple of 'seeds' from Stamm, they did not grow... Hudson is quite sure the problem lies with him... But I am not so sure anymore, after things proved fruitless with Stamm, too..."

"Sometimes these things just take time...?" Link mentioned a little nervously. He could tell what they were getting around to by now of course, which he wasn't totally adverse to, all things considered - Especially considering that he -had- already done this very kind of favor for another woman not long ago, not that he owed anybody who asked of course, but this was a special case, admittedly, just as the other one had also been. But this...

He had helped build this town... Not just the work with his hands, he had brought all of these people together. Specifically, he had brought these two people together... True it had been at their request and to the best that he could make of their specifications... But in any case. Now that he had brought them all together, they clearly wanted to stay together... It just seemed they needed some kind of glue to hold things all together...

Okay, bad analogy in one way, but it still made sense in others...

"We know..." Rhondson sighed. "And we tried to give it time... But now with Hagie threatening to leave... And on top of that, I got a visit from some of my sisters a few weeks ago too... They cannot force me, of course, but they strongly advised me to leave the marriage and come back home if no children were born soon, now that its been a few years... But I don't want to do that. Hudson and I... We might not be a perfect match, but we're a good one, and I like Tarrey Town and want to stay here... I want to see it continue to grow and flourish... Link, please. I know you're a very busy man, and it was so gracious of you to help as much as you have already... There's no love lost if you say no, but please, just once? Just tonight...?"

"I'm still convinced it's me that's the problem..." Hudson added, "I -am- much older after all... We probably just didn't have good timing with Stamm, he wasn't around very long after all... I'd be willing to accept if we both just waited too long, if we both just had bad timing, but... I think I'd be most likely to believe it's both of us and just count it on bad luck, if the Hero himself couldn't manage it..."

Link blinked a bit, "I... See..." And he really did, actually. Like Rhondson herself had said, she and Hudson clearly weren't a perfect match, but they made things work. Hudson likely wasn't the man Rhondson had dreamed of as a much younger lady, and Hudson, well... Probably hanged out with mostly blokes a lot most of his life for a reason, come to think of it... Actually, maybe there was another reason Hudson needed help in this matter, who knew, and Link didn't really feel like asking TOO many questions, but he got the gist of the answer and their reasons for coming to it... This reunion... Was about several things, and yes they loved each other, but love was not the number one reason they had come together. That reason was clearly for Progeny... In other words, for Survival.

Link had to relent inside, if there was one thing he understood, it was survival...

The last time he had needed to sleep on the decision but he knew it would look a bit odd to ask to take a nap in the middle of dinner. He also knew, though, that it surely wouldn't be unreasonable to keep quiet for a few extra minutes and ponder it over his stew while he ate the remainder of his bowl.

The other two resumed eating as well, trying to look 'natural', trying to be patient for Link's answer... Rhondson was a little better at it than Hudson, who was sweating with worry over his stew, even though there wasn't even any Goron curry spice in it... Finally, after finishing the last bite, pushing the bowl away, and sighing deeply, Link looked up at them, "...If it would help ease your worries, I would be willing to try, just once, tonight... Not that I don't like you fine folk, I wouldn't agree at all if I didn't, but I just can't afford any more time than that for almost anyone... I have to keep moving on. So..."

"Of course, Link. We understand." Rhondson answered for her husband, who was a little overwhelmed with joy at first and almost let a tear escape, but wiped it away. "We're so grateful just for this help... If not tonight, then we can both agree in peace that it was either never meant to be or will be in it's own much further time... Thank you, Link..."

Er... Well then...? How...?

Link's face seemed to betray at least a little confusion. This was definitely a new situation... Very strange, but even stranger still that it didn't seem outright alien... Somehow, even though this was weirder than almost anything... It just felt right? But at the same time... "Um... How did you, or, we...?"

Rhondson looked over to Hudson, who seemed to wake up out of his worries and realize they finally needed a reaction from him. "H-Huh? O-Oh, yes, right, of course - I, em, know that 'threes a crowd', as they say-" Maybe not always but this is definitely a case where it would be... "Whenever Stamm came I always went upstairs to read a book for a while, so... I'll just go do that now..."

Selecting a couple titles from the bookshelf, Hudson carried them upstairs and then disappeared out of sight rather quickly. He seemingly truly had no problems with this...

And then that left Link and Rhondson, specifically Link, looking a little awkward now... Were they just supposed to... Start? He tugged on his shirt collar and cleared his throat a little then, "So, ah... How do you want to...?"

Rhondson immediately shook her head at that. "I knew a gentleman like you would ask that right away... But no. You are our esteemed guest tonight, Link. As long as you leave happy, I will be happy. So... The happier I can make you tonight, the better for me..."

Link gulped. Ah. He was that kind of person too, so he got it. But the boot being on the other foot this time was a little out of place... "Admittedly I'm usually most concerned with making sure my lady-friends are as happy as possible, but... I guess our concern tonight is mostly to make it as -effective- as possible for you, so..."

Sensing a whole new air of seduction coming over her, Rhondson smiled down at him, bent down and whispered right next to his pointy ear, "Yes, Link... If you can only spare tonight, then I want to give you all I've got tonight... I want every drop I can squeeze out of you... I want to make you cum harder than you ever have in your life... So. I want you to tell me now, what I should do to make that happen..."

Link felt a bead of sweat run down next to that ear, and his clothes suddenly felt much tighter down there... Gerudo women were so hot, damn... And if she insisted, well, there was one thing definitely coming to mind right away... "Nngh... Other girls, before... They usually like to let me lead... To have me be on top... But I've kind of always wondered... What it would be like to have one of my lady-friends take control, and be on top of me... Also I've heard a few of the women in Gerudo Town telling each other to be careful about that position, that not every man can handle it... Well then. If that's the most challenging way to bed a Gerudo, then of course that's how I want to do it..."

Rhondson began to grin at that. "Aah, so I see... That's also why many Gerudo mothers tell their daughters to stay away from voe that are too skinny and scrawny, you know~ I pegged you that way at first..." She winked mischievously there. "But I guess now I have to admit, if any voe can handle it, it's got to be our land's great hero~ Alright then, Link... Lets put those beds together and have you lie down on them... Then I'll lie down on you~"

He bit back his grin and nodded, the two of them working together to put the beds together, then separating just long enough to start undressing. When Link had stripped away his tunic and Rhondson her sirwal set, they both glanced back at each other shyly... Shyly, but still glancing, still holding their gazes and appreciating each other's forms...

Rhondson grinned excitedly, even clenched a fist next to her curvaceous hips... "You're just what I imagined, and more..."

Link blushed, thanked her, and laid down across the two joined beds, legs hanging over the side a bit. He wondered suddenly if he'd gotten just a bit taller the last few years since he'd woken up. Surely he had to have, just a few inches at least, he wasn't done growing before he went into the Regeneration Chamber... Unless it stunted him somehow...

Rhondson seemed to be more concerned with another few inches, though, somewhere else... Link blushed to realize her eyes were focused there, licking her lips... He was contemplating which first move to make when next thing he knew, she was climbing onto him, her naked sex sitting first on his upper legs and thighs while she began to rub his manhood, half hard already and quickly growing more rigid, enough to her liking to sit on, at least... Once he was there, she raised herself up onto her knees, over Link's hips, and asked him, "I don't need to tease either of us, do I? I know little Hylian vai need it gentle and slow, but us Gerudo like to go fast and hard..."

Link had to bite back an almost feral grin at that, "Hurry up and quit teasing ME, then..."

She winked and shook her head, reaching down to grab his manhood and lead the tip of it up to her entrance. "Nn, of course not, hero... To do so would just be to tease myself~" She told him, and then, as soon as they were aligned, she let herself fall onto his cock, taking it all in at once and moaning deeply, "Ooh-! Oh, Link... It's inside so deep... I think I can get you inside a little deeper, though..." She suddenly grinned, rolling her hips on top of his, grinding his cock deeper inside of her, thinking that would surely make him scream.

Well... She got a grunt out of him at least~ Grabbing her hips, he pushed deep back into her, enjoying the loud gasp and subsequent little cry of pleasure he got from her. "Just so you know I'm not some flower..." He explained, moving his hands back off of her hips and down to her thighs again. "No need to worry about me wilting... Go on, Rhondson... Take what you want from me..."

She bit her buxom bottom lip, the magical green Gerudo lip-paint never once smudging, and nodded, roaming her hands over his chest as she purred back, "Alright, hero... If you're so sure..." She then pinched one of his nipples with her left hand, and with her right she reached up to pinch her own, an old Gerudo tradition to signify respect and equality between partners. Then she squeezed down on him from inside too, and began to bounce her hips gently up and down on his cock, just a slow and steady ride at first, but only just to start. Just when his cock was starting to feel slick from her sex, she suddenly started bearing her hips down on him faster, digging his cock deeper inside of her, causing her to release her lip and moan for him, "Oh... This feels so good..."

"Unh... Go faster..." Link requested, in just a slightly bossy tone. This was starting to feel really good to him too. Having the weight and pressure on him was just how he liked it, and it was a fun change of pace to have the woman be in charge. His member throbbed inside of her, wanting more, wanting the friction faster, rougher... Rhondson was right, most Hylian voe and vai were so used to delicate lovemaking, and he was fine with it most of the time by all means, but he was sick of it right now... Right now, what he really wanted was for Rhondson to quit being so shy herself and really give it to him... "Come on... Use my body how you want to... How you -really- want to. Come on Rhondson. I can take it... The 'Vannaga'..."

Rhondsom blushed deeply, not just from the meaning of the word but from what it meant that Link knew about it. Only those who had really gotten in deep into Gerudo Town would know about that word. In other words, well over 90% of the time only other Gerudo or other women would have ever heard it. Voe were almost never told that word or what it meant, unless their partner was damn sure they could handle it... 'Vannaga', the Rough Stuff. Not abusive of course, no proud Gerudo woman would ever allow that, but if you found a really manly voe, and you were an especially frisky and aggressive Gerudo yourself, you might try actually going all out and seeing if your man could handle it... Buuut then again, there were a handful of horror stories about voe who were NOT able to handle it, stories about men getting all kinds of injuries 'down there', but, well... In Link's opinion, and according to his experience... No pain, no gain, right?

"Are you su-?" Rhondson started to ask, but at the light glare he gave her, she quickly relented and nodded instead. "Alright Link... I trust you as much as you're trusting me, then..."

Reaching down to her hips, she took both his hands into hers, raised his muscular arms over his head and then with one hand, took both of his wrists and pinned them down. Then with the free hand she held his jaw, and bent down to kiss his cheek while she told him, "I'm a lucky woman if I've managed to find such a powerful voe, only if for a night... But can you really handle this~?" She asked, squeezing down on his member inside of her and rolling her hips around on him... She moved a little closer to his ear then and added, "Or this~?"

She raised her hips up then, almost off of his cock completely, but kept the tip inside for a second... Then she slammed her hips back down into the sitting position with another, harder roll of her hips, and Link's mouth fell wide open, crying out not from pain, but absolute ecstasy, signaling without an exact reply that he could indeed handle it, and was absolutely loving it... It was just the noise Rhondson was hoping she'd hear from him, and to show her appreciation she bobbed her hips up and down on his cock for him several times, panting and gasping down into his twitching, sensitive ears, "Oh yes, goddesses, I can tell you were chosen and sent by the gods, alright-Only a man blessed by Din could do this, you glorious, exceptional voe, you-OH!"

Even with his hands held down and with her weight, which was definitely more than his, on top of him, Link still managed to thrust up into her as she had pulled up. Pulling it off had left him sweating, but oh well, he sweated a lot harder in the Gerudo Desert and up Death Mountain, and this was certainly a lot more fun either of those exercises...

"Keep going, Rhondson... It feels amazing..." He encouraged her, feeling extra encouraged himself to keep thrusting up into her now and again with how her muscles squeezed so tight around him, but still managed to be as slick and slippery as chu jelly with how wet she was for him... Goddesses almighty with how wet she was, surely it couldn't hurt to ask... "I want to feel you cum on me... Okay?"

She smiled wide for him and nodded, requesting in turn, "Then... Do what you just did again, and again..."

He grunted back an affirmative noise, focusing his energy and attention on his cock, which he thrust back into her five, six, several times in succession, causing her to cry out with stronger intensity each time, until finally she decided she couldn't stand anymore, forced her hips back down on him, sitting on his cock completely and rolling on it while she whimpered and panted.

She kept holding his wrists down, but the other hand quickly returned to her own body, down to her belly and between her sex, where she began to rub herself while rolling her hips hard down on Link's cock, steadily gasping louder and louder until she cried out and laid her sweating brow down on his shoulder, her inner body clenching and contracting around him as she rode him to completion.

Link gasped along with her hips jerking on top of him. "Yes... Goddesses, YES..." He breathed out, laying his head back to get a few gasps of air inside. "Whenever you're ready to do that again please just let me know..."

Rhondson seemed visibly surprised, but as if she was trying not to show how much so she was. "O-Oh, you mean you didn't...? Well, well... Voe don't often do this at all, and I don't think I've ever heard of a voe being able to cum after his woman has... You know, because a -Gerudo- vai cumming usually does the trick~?"

Link had the sense to look a little sheepish. "No offense meant, of course~? It just felt so amazingly good to make you feel so good, I want to feel it one more time..."

She shook her head in semi-disbelief, only able to believe it because she was seeing it. "You really are the hero... Alright then, again. No complaints here... That is, as long as you promise to cum for me too~" She added in her huskiest Gerudo voice, making Link's ears go redder than flaming sand and fire flowers...

"I can definitely promise you that..." Link assured her, his voice dropping to a throaty whine and his ears twitching at every wet noise her slick sex was making while bouncing on top of his, "Just keep doing what you're doing... Please...!" He pleaded, becoming strained from the pleasure pent up and building in him...

Rhondson blinked, slowly letting go of his wrists and bunching up the sheets at their sides in her fingers instead, her beautiful shapely lips just slightly agape at the state she was getting him so close to, and nodded. She then started rolling her hips again, a little slower and more steady than before, but slightly harder and more powerful and more purposeful. A few times when his sex hit the back of hers she'd roll down on him again and clench, causing him to throw his head back and moan every time, and every time he moaned, she rubbed her clit in kind with the sound...

Grabbing her hips and grinding back up into her as she bore down on top of him made them both moan almost in tandem, causing Link's cock to throb from the conjoined sound, in turn causing him to buck up into her, eliciting another gasp and moan from her... Yes, this was fun, letting this sexy Gerudo woman control him for a while, perfect blend of emerald and ruby that Rhondson was, she was truly one of the many gems her people produced... It was easy to appreciate Gerudo beauty, but only the worthiest men could accept their latent savage warrior nature... But he could. He was a lot like them, deep down, beneath his pretty face and any occasional adornments he cared to indulge in... He was truly a wild beast, and always would be, beneath the surface...

That beast... He could feel it was coming to the surface now, growling at the heels of his imminent orgasm... Snarling at him, wondering within him, 'Why are you really even doing this...' He started to realize something silently within himself... It was perhaps pragmatic, but also just a bit pathetic to be claiming he was doing this just as a favor, or just as a failsafe, just as a 'just in case'...

Nothing was guaranteed, nothing was written in stone... But he had absolutely no plans of losing against the Dark Calamity when he finally faced it. As much as he pushed himself to keep going, he also had no intention of facing the Calamity before he was as sure as he could absolutely be that he would be victorious. Obviously... There were too many people counting on him to succeed... Not just Zelda, who had been waiting so long, but everyone who had been born to this new world, and now including his potential future children, too. He was extra damned determined to make sure they would never have this burden upon them (if his failure didn't doom everyone on the spot...), and even more determined than that that he would actually meet them someday...

So why was he now planting these seeds...? Because he had every intention of coming back later to see the saplings and trees they would grow to become...

Digging his fingers just a little harshly into her meaty hips and thighs, Link bucked up again from under her, despite her considerably larger frame and added weight, proving the young man did indeed work out... This particular position was hard enough for most men to withstand simply trying to endure it laying down, but no, Link was the damn hero, Slayer of Lynels and soon the Calamity too for goddesses sake - Of course he had to do better than the rest, and it wasn't like him to take anything just laying down... (Even if that was how he currently enjoyed it~)

Of course a Warrior Woman like that wasn't hurt by his sudden grabby hands, quite the opposite, his fingers digging into her thighs and sneaking around to her even more impressively muscled buttock made her gasp and moan louder than anything else so far, made her grab the hand on her buttock and force him to squeeze it tighter, while the other hand slid between her sex, getting ready for the next wave of ecstasy...

Link readied himself too, and then rode with the second and much stronger wave her body was tossing him around in now, gasping and throwing his head back against the mattress as her sex spasmed against him. By now his own 'master sword' (not the one by the door...) was nearly depleted of energy itself, much like his partner, who despite having the stamina of the famed Gerudo on her side, had still apparently and predictably lost her spar with the hero... Panting hard on top of him, her emerald eyes sparkled down at him, licking her forest green lips... "If that didn't 'spur your steed', hero, you might have to mount me yourself now... I'm absolutely exhausted~"

He could definitely relate, but he also still had a job to finish here, and he patted her thigh silently as an indication to roll over. She did, now laying on her stomach on the opposite side of the beds, resting her head in her arms, she beckoned him back over with a single finger and a low, sexy giggle. "Show me your true power now, hero..."

Throwing his legs over each side of her (feeling very much as if he was riding a horse with how large her bottom was) his slick sex quickly found its way back into hers, groaning as their pleasures fused together again seamlessly, beginning to sink deep into her and thrust with abandon. He was so close now...

Her erratic gasps and moans indicated, as well as seeing one of her hands snake down underneath her belly and between her legs, that she was helping herself to a third release, much to Link's satisfaction and delight... Thrusting into her, he could feel her convulsing around his cock, shuddering one more time around him before he felt his own legendary strength finally give out. Sinking into her, his now almost painfully erect cock finally gave up everything that he has promised, and the hero collapsed against her back, unable to move for several minutes. Thankfully Rhondson remained ever the perfect host and allowed him to recuperate his strength where he was for as long as he needed.

After catching his breath and letting his heart return to it's normal pace, Link finally willed himself to get up again, kissing his partner for the night sweetly on the back she had so kindly let him rest upon before raising himself up to his arms, withdrawing, and then sitting up on the bed and beginning to pull his pants back on.

Rhondson sat up as well, reaching over and planting a quick and grateful kiss on Link's cheek before collecting her clothes and redressing as well. They were mostly in a content shared silence until Rhondson smiled, rubbed her belly, and mentioned, "Thank you so much, Link... Really. Even if it doesn't work out, it really means so much that you'd try... And for the record? You were really wonderful just now..." She blushed a deep crimson color and hushed herself then, but dared to add anyways, "It was... Honestly the best I've ever had... Your future wife is going to be the luckiest woman in the land!"

He smiled and thanked her in return, not bothering to think of let alone mention the possibility that he might never make it to that milestone. He just made sure to tell her and hope in the meantime, "When I find out who she'll be, all of Tarrey Town will be sure to get an invite to the wedding."

Rhondson grinned and nodded, looking a little bashful now suddenly, continuing to rub her belly... "Well... I'll go ahead and put the beds back now. Would you be a dear and tell Hudson he can come back down for bed? And ah... Will you be staying the night with us too, or going to the inn...?"

He usually thought it was the kindest thing to do to pay for a room at the inn and support their local economy rather than accept a free room. It wasn't like he didn't have the extra rupees, after all his adventuring. But right now it seemed like the kindest and least impersonal thing to do would be to accept her offer, so he did. "I'll stay here tonight. I'll just probably go up on the rooftop and look at the stars for a while before I retire for the night, okay?"

She nodded in acceptance, and having nothing else she could think to add, she bid him goodnight with a simple nod. Afterwards, heading up the stairs to the small loft of an extra bedroom above, Link blushed as he passed by Hudson, who had his face shoved in a book and was sitting facing the window to boot...

Link coughed. Should he feel more weird about this? Like it was weird but he should probably feel -more- weird... "Ah, Rhondson said you can come to bed..."

Hudson coughed up a nervous but good-natured laugh at that. "HOHO! Glad to hear everything went well! Yes, yes, very good to hear! ER, not that I -HEARD- anything, OF COURSE..."

Link snorted, quickly slipping out to the rooftop, only quickly quipping in response, "Well, if you did hear anything, hopefully you wrote down a note or two in those books~"

He stepped out onto the rooftop then, taking in the expansive horizon. The sky view from Tarrey Town was really something else, and then some. It was well past evening now, everyone was now inside their houses for the day. The sky was almost completely darkened and starry, except for the slightest sliver of Twilight still visible in the furthest distance, bordering on the sea...

Link took in a deep breath and leaned on the wooden railing, staring out at the last remnants of twilight... His mind felt so full, and yet at the same time, so blank. There was always so much to think about, but he always had to keep moving on, keep alert, don't contemplate too much or you'll walk right into an enemy, after all...

Something about the visage of twilight, though... Made him feel like slowing down and having a think for once... Something about that deep purple color mixing against the orange-reds... For some reason those colors just seemed so familiar...

Suddenly the last light of the sun dipped down and disappeared under the skyline... However, instead of the light simply vanishing, a last bright flash of light seemed to shoot like a star from the sun, traveling in the blink of an eye to rest at the edge of Tarrey Town's borders, just in front of Link. The bright ball of light almost seemed to resemble a star fragment at first, but when Link looked more carefully, he noticed that formless ball of light had quickly morphed into the shape of a wild wolf, instead...

It was obviously not a regular wolf. It retained its shining form of light even after descending from the heavens. It sat there, seeming eerily patient, as if waiting for him, until he directed his eyes on him...

Only then did the 'Wolf' 'speak', a voice rumbling from the creature's mouth even though the snout was closed... "Good luck follow you, son of my sons and daughters... Do you know who I am?"

Link blinked down at the otherworldly creature, and the spirit he now knew for sure it had to inhabit. "I guess with an introduction like that, I'd have to be pretty dumb not to put it together..."

The lupine of light seemed to crack a toothy grin at that, but then it was kind of hard to tell, since he was in wolf form... "Heh. No, you're one of the cleverer ones... And also... One of the most considerate. One of the most compassionate. Out here risking life and limb to save the entire kingdom and you can still make time to help the little folks too... Well. I'm not about to give you a big head for that. That's not why I even came. I only came... To thank you for something..."

Link cocked his head, "Go on...?"

Red canine eyes glowed at him in the darkness, amidst the golden aura of that otherworldly fur... "...I just wanted to say thank you... For never hunting the wolves... You'll hunt the cranes... The boars... The deer... But you've never resorted to killing a horse, or a wolf..."

Link rubbed the back of his neck modestly. "It wasn't a big deal..."

The wolf seemed to know the truth, though. "You were desperate a time or two, but you still acted with honor and didn't resort to killing the creatures you always felt kinship with... I noticed that. You felt a kinship with them even if you didn't understand why... Well, now you know why... I have no advice to give you. All I have to say is this: Feel free to be as Wild as you want, young one. Your heart is in the right place. And now my heart returns to where it belongs... In the Twilight. With my beloved Princess..."

It was heartening to know exactly who he spoke of, even if he didn't speak her name. It felt good to hear that Twilight eventually found His Princess... And it made his wild, wandering descendant all the more determined to find his own.

With a howl, the lupine-shaped creature of light jumped out into the sky like a shooting star, soon becoming so distant as to blend in with all the others. Link stayed there, watching them all twinkle back at him, wondering how many were his fathers and mothers, how many siblings or uncles or grandparents might be cheering him on up there... The blood moon always seemed so evil and huge and imposing whenever it came, once in a great while, but then... Link supposed, if even half the stars out there were rooting for him, then an occasionally evil moon really couldn't keep him down for long...

Just as he was smiling to himself thinking that, he was snapped out of his thoughts by the sound of one of the nearby doors bursting open. It was the rooftop door to Fyson's house, and it was Fyson himself who came out, only his purple kilt-piece messily tied back on for the bare minimum of outside modesty. He fell onto the railing of his own rooftop balcony, and he was panting very hard through his open beak... He seemed out of it for a while, and Link just rested on his own perch, not bothering him until Fyson bothered to notice him first. "Oh... Hey, Link... What's up over there, buddy...?" He tried to ask nonchalantly. If 'chalant' was actually a thing he'd totally be it, though.

Link snorted and rolled his eyes, "Nothing much! What's going on over there with YOU~?" He asked semi-sarcastically, kinda getting that Fyson seemed to want to brag a little. Aww why the heck not? Let the bird-boy turned bird-man puff out his feathery chest~

Fyson bristled up at first, almost a little embarrassed, but too proud and feeling too high-in-the-sky to get down, and finally asked Link, half coy and half bold, "Say... Champion Link... Have you ever been with TWO girls at ONCE~?"

Link blinked, whistled, and finally had to relent and shake his head 'no'. "At least," He amended, "Not yet in this lifetime, anyways..." He definitely wasn't about to rule it out, under the right circumstances, he supposed, and he certainly wouldn't put it past a past life or two...

Fyson seemed to be very proud to hear that answer. He chuckled and then guffawed to himself over it, "HAHA~ I've got one up on a CHAMPION~!"

Link snorted, but let him have his moment, while also enjoying his own. A moment later Fyson whistled over to him again, pulling out a smokeable. He explained, "Hey Link... What do you say, wanna share this with me? My dad gave it to me before I left, told me to smoke it when I became a man. I think that time is now!" He pumped his feathered fist proudly.

Link, however, had spent just enough time around asshole knights to be just a little bit wiser than this cocky avian kid. "Um... Depends. Is that green herb or red herb?"

Fyson blinked, "Huh? Oh, uh, red herb? My dad says that's the stuff that really puts feathers on your chest!"

Link snorted and then laughed. He hated to say it but had to be honest, "Your dad's an old jealous dick. Red herb is like smoking MALICE sprinkled with Goron curry spice. It's an old gag gift. My guess is he planned on giving you the good stuff after you gave him grandkids," This was an old Rito 'prank' he'd heard of from a long time ago. Seemed more like just jerk behavior to him. "If you want a tip from me? Now that those guardians that were down in the Torin Wetlands are gone, there's all kinds of green herb that grows down there. Both the culinary and the, you know, 'celebrational'. Have at it~"

Fyson seemed bashful now instead of haughty and blinked back at him, "Whoa, uh, thanks! That was a really great tip! Do you want me to like, fly over and get us some now, or-?"

But Link held up his left hand and shook it politely. "No, hah, it's fine. Feel free to indulge, and maybe I might too at some point in the future, but, well... For a while yet, I need to stay alert..." He'd been a little too proud to admit it back when he was still following the four from his last adventure, but indulging in that Noble Pursuit and taking on a Lynel... That might have been going a bit too far with his own bravado, admittedly... "But... Maybe if I manage to take out enough Big Bad Guys, maybe then I'll come back and take you up on that offer someday. That is if you don't have too many hatchlings to handle by then! I take it you'll be taking at least two brides then?" Such things were not unheard of, especially nowadays... People could be hard to find, sometimes generous types tended to share instead of risking losing a friend...

Fyson laughed and proudly admitted, "P-Perhaps three! It's not... FULLY decided, but, well, from the sounds of things they'd rather stay where it seems safe than take the risk going any further..."

The seemed like it worked out just fine for him, so Link silently passed him some blessings and saluted him off to 'sleep'. "Well, in any case, I'm going to bed. I assume your potential third wife is waiting in yours, so don't keep her too long!"

Leaving the newly deflowered birdman to collect himself for his last performance of the night, Link then went back into his generous host's house, where all the lights had been turned out for the night, except for just one candle on the table to lead him to the bed. He followed it, blew it out as he passed, and got into the empty bed, the one that waited for a much more permanent resident...

In the morning, Link's ears perked to hear the sound of of eggs cooking, and the accompanying smell. Mmm, Gerudo Firestone Eggs, a classic recipe of curried, salted eggs with peppers, a real get up and go kind of breakfast for tough warrior women and men that were seen as manly. Hudson had a bit of trouble huffing through it, admittedly, and had a regular omelet on the side. Link however raced through his first helping, gratefully accepted a second, and then guiltily accepted just a third more, after gulping down some milk to wash away the burn too. He smiled dotingly on Rhondson after finishing her food, though he had no intention to stay for her, it didn't mean he couldn't be sweet on her, especially since Hagie had been such a dick. So he told her rather confidently and indulgently, "I'm sure more people will be appreciating your cooking soon, Rhondson..."

She blushed and beamed for him, and then she and Hudson saw him off at the gate of the village together, holding hands with each other even though they couldn't take their eyes off of Link, beaming down on him, "Come back as soon as you can, our hero! Blessings and safety on your journey!" Hudson told him, grinning but tearful.

Rhondson fretted once more, "Are you sure there's nothing else we can do for you before you head back to your journey, Link?" She wanted to make sure there was anything she could do to help him fight the good old fight... But there was something else Link suddenly thought of, remembering his bowl that he had placed back up in their cabinet that morning, that would make him feel better before leaving.

"Hey... There is one thing... Can you guys make one more bowl for the next time I come to visit? I'm really hoping I should have someone with me by then, I think... Make another blue bowl to match mine, and carve the name 'Zelda' on it, okay?"

Now Rhondson was tearful like Hudson too. She nodded and bowed and promised to do so, and Link waved back at her and headed back down on the road again, this time heading back towards... Kakariko. For some reason he felt really strongly that it was time for him to return to Kakariko, now that he had tamed all four Divine Beasts, he just knew, it was time to go back there...

He was getting so close to being strong enough to face the Calamity... To finally being able to free her... He could feel his strength and confidence building to their peak. He just had to be absolutely sure he could beat the beast...There was no way he could fail her. There was too many amazing things to show her when he finally brought her back into the world of light once more... Too many amazing things he wanted to come back to himself...

For now, back towards Kakariko...

OoOoOoOoOoOoOoOoOoO

(( Lol first of all? Don't feel bad if you'd killed all kinds of wolves for gourmet meat, I have too, I'm a hypocrite, LMAO~ XD Second of all, aaaaugh, sorry this took so long, this whole year has been insane as I'm sure we ALL know, extra so for trying to write anything lol XD;; But anyways, hopefully this came out half decent despite the hurdles of trying to write it with all this craziness this year, I kept having to come back to it so I'm sure it could've been better, but oh well. Was totally more distracted thinking about the last two chapters still to come too, since the next chapter up is gonna have fan favorite PAYA! I'm sure a few of you are excited to see her, as am I~ And then QUICK QUESTION y'all, the end of this chapter might be foreshadowing concerning Link being with 2 ladies at once? XD Like I was planning on the last chapter being with Zelda buuuut well... What y'all think about a Link/Zelda/Mystery Third Character 3-way? XD;;;; It's probably gonna be a more 'canon' char instead of an NPC if I do it, but IDK, tell me whatcha guys think~ ;P ))


	5. UNFINISHED 'Making a Masterpiece with Paya'

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> WARNING this chapter and the next one are UNFINISHED and very strongly likely NEVER WILL BE BC GOD APPARENTLY DOESN'T WANT ME TO FINISH IT, WHEN APPARENTLY WHEN I WRACK MY BRAIN ALMOST FINISHING THE SCENE WITH LINK AND PAYA TAKING MORE MENTAL ENERGY THAN ANY OTHER CHAPTER EVER JUST TO HAVE IT DISAPPEAR ON ME AND GO CORRUPTED FOR NO FUCKING REASON I CAN FIGURE OUT SOOOOOOO FUCK IT I'M BROKEN THIS CHAPTER/THE NEXT ONE OFFICIALLY BROKE ME, I CAN'T GO ON, IT'S TOO FUCKING MUCH JUST TO HAVE ALL THAT SWEPT AWAY AND DISAPPEARED ON ME FOR NO FUCKING REASON, HERE'S WHAT I HAD SAVED BUT I JUST CAN'T OH MY FUCKING GOD IT'S TOO MUCH... A LIL APPRECIATION WOULD BE -NICE- THO...

After collecting a few spare cooking ingredients along the road for a day or two, Link decided to save his feet and warped the rest of the way to the shrine just atop the hill outside of Kakariko. As soon as his presence was recognized, people all over the village started to hustle and bustle around him. He got the feeling something must have happened and went to check on Impa and Paya.

Impa was glad to hear about LInk's recent and considerable triumphs, but apparently some other problems had popped up in her village since then. This was obvious right away by the way poor Paya was cowering nearby in a corner, right next to the distinct empty spot where an incredibly important sacred orb was supposed to be sitting. Paya was quick to inform him that it had been stolen in the middle of the night while she got her rare and much needed rest. The poor girl felt so violated, knowing not just that she had been stolen from, but how close she could have come to death...

But then... The fact the neither her nor Impa WAS dead was QUITE telling...

Paya was of course beyond distraught, though Impa didn't seem to be fussing over her, Link knew the other villagers surely had given her heck for the mistake. She swore that she only took her eyes off of it for a second, and Link well and truly believed her, truly believed that she worked herself to exhaustion trying to keep that old orb safe and clean and revered her entire life, and he for one at least refused to blame her for nodding off after all her dedication, as if the Yiga spy wasn't constantly looking for that slip-up every hour of every day...

And if they were able to look out for that slip-up so constantly, and hadn't killed Paya or Impa... It was certainly someone who lived in the village... And someone who still wanted to, most likely...

Impa asked Link to stay by Paya's side through the rest of the day, to assure her and calm her. Obviously the girl was worried about a return visit, and Link was no dummy, he knew Impa had put it together herself they had a spy and needed good old Link to sniff it out... In the meantime though, he accompanied Paya up to her room, assured her that everything would be fine, that she had done her best and that he would take over from there, that everything would be alright... It took a few hours but her sniffling, crying and cowering finally lessened up, until she was able to completely put herself at right again. After all it wouldn't do to keep blubbering around someone so handsome...

Especially when he was being so sweet on her at the moment, sitting right next to her, occasionally even daring to reach over and give her back a few pats, which caused her about once an hour to scoot just the tiniest inch closer to him, until she was nearly beside him at the end of the day, when she finally mentioned, "Master Link. Thank you for staying by my side the whole day. I see now that crying and feeling scared won't help us get the heirloom back..." He hadn't said anything to pressure her of course, but he respected that she was trying to be helpful again after her own more than reasonable break-down... She then mentioned, "I checked with Dorian and Cado, but they said they didn't see anyone other than the villagers around... I'll try to remember anything I can about the night the heirloom was taken, but..."

She trailed off, not wanting to say anything accusing. Link was already thinking what she and Impa both were, of course. None of them were dummies even if they had been fooled by this spy for a while... The rest of the village might blame Paya, but the truth was all of them had been fooled too...

Link stayed around until nightfall... Then he put on his stealthiest, darkest-colored sheikah suit, covered his golden hair to hide from the light of the moon and blended in with the night. He knew exactly who his target was. The one who himself had been made a target...

Just past ten 'o' clock and he started to make his way up the cliff overlooking the village. Link followed, up past the Ta'Log Naeg shrine, up and off to the side, into the forest where most wouldn't think to wander, as it was very dense for a stretch. But after a while he watched as Dorian came up to a narrow bridge over a small creek, which led to a clearing, and in the middle of that clearing, a shrine pedastel...

He wasn't alone, that was quickly made obvious when he demanded someone to show themselves, and Link knew that he wasn't talking about him, because of course he knew he was better than that to have been spotted by this simp of a spy...

Some big guy showed up and Yadda Yadda Dorian started having some special little 'Old Times Sake' moment with the dude, quickly making it obvious that he was in fact a former Yiga himself, and even if he didn't want to be anymore, clearly they were still able to use him, especially with his little family trying to live peacefully in Kakariko. Well that wouldn't do for Link, so he decided to step forward.

The big doofus of a Yiga finally noticed him when he made his presence obvious, and they two of them duked it out. But as they say, bigger they are, harder they fall, and Link sent his banana-loving ass tipping into the nearby creek to drown, partially on the water and partially on his own blood. Then Link turned to Dorian, wondering what to do with him... 

He quickly confessed, of course, told Link his sob story, and admittedy it was pretty sad... Though Link mostly felt bad for his wife and the children more than Dorian. Then he asked him to keep things between them about this whole incident, even though there had been a plot to kill both Impa and Paya. Haha. Yeah, no. Link of course 'promised' he would and then headed straight back to Impa's...

Paya had gone to sleep by then, it was very late, but Impa was waiting for him to report his findings. He of course told her everything and she nodded. He knew she had no plans to out Dorian unless he messed up again, for the sake of his children at least, but he wasn't about to not let her know to look out for another mess up after one that huge... She thanked Link and he nodded, and found a pillow to lay his head on for the rest of what was left of the night. 

In the early morning, strangely, Link woke up to a completely different kind of scene and mood. He trained himself long ago to wake with the slightest movement of course, so he noticed when a couple of elder males came in, and together with a silent nod from Impa, they traveled up to Paya's room to talk with her. Of course though, they didn't 'talk' aloud, they knew Link's sensitive ears would pick up even a whisper from another floor level. No, they instead used hand signals or possibly even a magical telepathy to make sure he couldn't know what had been said, before quickly leaving just a few moments later. Very strange, very curious...

Even more strange and curious was that when he allowed himself to fully awaken about an hour later, at the proper time of morning instead of the barest crack of dawn it was when the elders visited, he found all the people of Kakariko about the village preparing for what seemed to be at least a moderate celebration. The oldest, meanest rooster was being beheaded to be stewed in a pot, carrots and pumpkins and apples were being harvested for the stew and for cakes and pies. In the meantime Link was served some eggs and watch the going-ons with a slight sense of unease. Of course he liked a good celebration just like anyone else, but this was weird, especially for sheikah... Usually after such an embarrassing mishap as what happened last night, people like these would lie low and not speak of it. Were they perhaps instead using this celebration as a distraction, as another way of not speaking about it? After all nobody wanted to be the party pooper who brings up something awkward when everyone else is trying to have fun...

Well, he figured he should just go along with it and stay and rest and enjoy the free food for just one more day. Why not? No point letting all that food they were cooking go to waste, and maybe he might learn a little more about whatever was really going on...

Of course his first course of action was to try to find Impa by herself and sneakily just ask her what was going on, but her answer was vague. "Hmm? Oh we just had a few extra things that needed to be harvested anyways, and since we had our most esteemed guest in town, and since you just conquered all of the Divine Beasts and will soon make your rescue attempt of the Princess once obtaining the sword of legend, the elders decided now was a good time to have a small celebration to acknowledge your efforts, and to ask the goddesses to bless you with a safe conclusion to your journey. You already trouble yourself with enough Link, so please don't worry... The Sheikah tribe have always been loyal to the Royal Family first, but... In order to bring the last of them back, you are the one we must support. Please allow us all to do our best to do so..."

Huh...? That was weird too... Impa's words seemed flippant at first, but by the end she seemed more purposeful... Well, in any case, even though Link could tell something was kind of up around him, he still trusted most of these people more than not, so he settled down by the nearby goddess pond, tranquilly playing with passing koi fish that suckled on his fingertips while all the pretty ladies around him prepared things that smelled sweet and delicious. 

He noticed though, after a few hours had passed, that Paya hadn't come out of the house today... That wasn't completely alarming, she was usually kind of a shut-in, obviously, since it was her job to watch that orb so carefully, but of course once in a while Impa watched the orb herself and let Paya fetch some groceries and get at least a little of that much needed sunlight, and now since the orb was finally out of her hands for good, and since they were having a party, Link assumed that meant she would be allowed to join... Perhaps Paya was still just too shy and embarrassed though... He supposed after being a shut in for that long it would be hard to go out and celebrate the next day... 

But then again... What were those old guys talking to her and Impa about early that morning before everything started? It might seem like the obvious answer was that Paya was being excluded from the celebration for her failure to keep the orb from being stolen, but Link didn't think that was it. After all one of the other guards was the one that stole it, Impa surely had told at least the other two elders about that, so Paya couldn't be completely blamed, and since Dorian himself was waiting for the feast out in the open with his children, surely Paya wasn't being punished...?

His worries finally lessened up another hour later when, just before the hours of twilight set a blanket of colors and shade over the land and sky, Paya finally emerged from her home, adorned in a very intricate and flowy dress. It was something definitely different than her usual short shrine-maiden dress used for cleaning. This was definitely a ceremonial dress. Her face was also painted, not just with the usual symbols on her forehead, but with lipstick and eyeshadow and blush too, and several very valuable and very old gemstone hairpins had been fastened into her locks, along with a precious diamond circlet around the crown of her head.

She looked very nice... But... Almost just a -tad- overdressed actually, especially for her, and especially considering none of the other women were quite that dressed up actually, and why were some of the women glaring at her like tha--Wait. Wait wait wait. Wwwaaaaaaaiiiitt a MINUTE, STASIS THE WORLD, WHAT WAS GOING ON RIGHT NOW--??

Everyone else be damned, Link had to made sure this wasn't quite what it looked like -- He found a quick moment when Paya was standing alone and pulled her behind an apple tree, whispering in a slight panic, but trying his best to keep cool, "Um. Paya? This isn't what it looks like, right? Because it looks an awful lot like you're about to get married or something, but I can't for the life of me figure out WHO you're supposed to be getting married to here...?" Hopefully that was direct enough without seeming accusing... Link understood there was a lot of pressure on her and didn't want her to think he was mad at her personally for this, whatever this was, but he was a little disappointed that she would still just go through with it without complaint, at least if he was being dragged into it in some way too...?

But she didn't seem worried about that at least, and to ease his worries, she quickly informed him, "I AM getting married... But you needn't worry. Of course I am not worthy to marry you, Link... But now that you have tamed the fourth and final Divine Beast, I am being asked to fulfill a sacred ceremony -- One that my own mother and grandmother Impa waited many years for the chance to fulfill. They never got to, but now that the time has come, I am the fortunate shrine maiden being asked to complete this rare and honored role... Link... You have done so much already... Of course we would not demand any more commitments from you. All that will be asked of you during this ceremony is that your sword be temporarily borrowed. It is... T-To your sword only, that I am being asked to commit myself to... I must do this... Walking away simply isn't an option..."

That was... A little less worrisome, he supposed? At least for him. But Paya didn't seem like she was any less worried... Link had a feeling there was more to this than he knew, but for the time being, he couldn't exactly stop this. This was age-old tradition and that was what Paya had been prepared for her whole life. It wasn't the least bit fair to her, but Link was also smart enough to know that when it came to traditions, people were far less likely to care about what was 'fair', and complaining about it would just shame Paya, perhaps even get her in trouble. 

In fact, though he'd like to give the residents of Kakariko more credit than the Yiga at least, Link knew well that the consequences of a Sheikah failing in the old days wasn't that much different than how a Yiga that failed was treated... Paya might actually be secretly banished or even secretly killed (highly unlikely but Link wasn't going to take the chance...) once he left... Most likely she would 'simply' be ostracised the rest of her life, probably forced to live on the outskirts of the village, shunned and rejected as a failure...

The only thing Paya could really do to keep her life normal was to do what they said... It wasn't fair to her but to Link's frustration... It seemed this just wasn't something he could so easily save her from... He couldn't just slaughter the people demanding this of her, they were otherwise good people that she loved. She had been trained to believe that fulfilling this would be Paya's honor. But Link knew... He could see it in her shy eyes, looking away, she had her doubts deep down too, and she knew at least a bit more than she was telling him...

He couldn't help but feel cautious and even a little jealous handing his sword over to Paya's careful bosom, but it was only gentlemanly. If that sword could only bring her normality when for him it was destined to always give him greatness and glory, he could at least let her borrow it for just a few minutes...

She thanked him with as deep a bow as she could manage while holding his sword as carefully as she could, and returned to Impa, who was waiting nearby. It seemed as soon as he had given that sword to her, the ceremony had officially begun. The others crowded around the outskirts of the goddess pond while Paya very carefully stepped up to the goddess statue on the narrow little earth bridge leading up to it, and sank the blade of the sword in front of the holy little goddess statue, before bowing down low with the eye on her forehead to the ground.

Impa quickly hissed at her suddenly, "Paya! Your SLEEVES..." 

They had been dipping into the water at her sides. Paya gasped and quickly pulled them out of the water, though there wasn't much room to work with, then bowed back down again. 

Paya then rose up, looking at the sword and the statue in reverence. For a few seconds, to Link's amazement, it seemed like a ghostly outline of Princess Zelda's spirit had appeared before Paya. It didn't seem like any of the other villagers could see it, they weren't reacting to it...? But Paya looked up at the spirit, the only one with the wide eyes Link also had seeing her, and the spectre of the princess proceeded to bend down and kiss Paya on the forehead, right in the middle of her third eye... 

The spirit vanished as quickly as she had come, but Link got the distinct feeling that Paya... Had gotten her blessing...?

The sight of it made his heart skip a beat for a moment, but as soon as Paya returned from the goddess pond, the villagers just quickly went back to the usual activities and festivities, with no indication whatsoever that they had seen anything but Paya's bow. That alone seemed to appease them, and so the benches and tables were filled with people and food. They enjoyed the bounty slowly, everyone having a sort of "GIving Thanks" ritual during the meal towards Link where each person in the village took a turn telling him what they were grateful for having in their lives because of his hard work and bravery, how they pledged to continue helping him protect Hyrule and the royal family, however small it currently was. 

It was flattering and all a bit much, and made it kind of hard to actually enjoy the food, but finally after everyone was done he was allowed to pick through the now cold but still tasty offerings, wondering what all that was about... He supposed it was their way of fortifying not just his body with this food, but his spirit with their thanks and encouragement. Well, their words -were- very nice and heartfelt, which he was sure was difficult for some of their stiffer members, and the food was good as always. He was certainly more than fortified already by all this, ready to get back to what he had to do--

Except... Several members of the village suddenly took out old, traditional instruments and began to play them. Some other members began to stiffly dance with each other, slow and purposeful displays instead of truly joyful leaps of merriment. Paya was kneeling before the shrine, watching them all. Impa suddenly pulled Link off to the side behind a tree herself, the others seemingly paying her no mind as she did so, all at least except for Paya, who glanced just briefly towards them with a small amount of worry. 

Link quirked a brow down at the woman who was now his elder, leaning against the tree, "Impa...?"

She simply 'got down to business', as had always been her style, "Link... We'll be requesting that you stay with us one more night before you go out on your attempt to find the sword of legend and defeat Calamity Ganon... We'll be... Humbly requesting that you stay one more additional night with Paya tonight..."

Link steeled a look at her, a look that demanded truth, and no lies. "Impa, I had just convinced myself that this wasn't what it looked like at first... But now I'm starting to think it is. You tell me then..."

Impa was quick to defend herself and the village's ways, but not to deny anything, really. "Come now, Link. You're a champion... One would be a fool to try to force you to do something you didn't want to... Everyone in this village wants the same thing, has the same goal... To assist you as best we can. No one would do anything to jeopardize that. We all simply... Want to offer you whatever help we can... That's all anyone can do, is simply offer to help, however they best can..." She ended rather cryptically, in a way that supposedly suggested she had fully answered him even though he still didn't get it at all... In any case, she bowed after that and walked away, clearly not about to answer anything else. 

Night fell over the village, and people started going back into their homes at last. But Link noticed very pointedly that Impa did not return to her home, no, she carefully sneaked away into the inn when she was sure he hadn't been looking anymore, leaving only Link and Paya to stay at the shrine tonight... This was getting too obvious... But now that it WAS this obvious, Link knew he couldn't just shame or embarass Paya by leaving her alone... They were both being expected to play a role here tonight, but... Link was NOT just gonna read his lines, that was for sure...

By the time the moon was high overhead, not a single villager was left out and about, except for the guards at the entrances of the village of course, but the guards that usually stayed outside of Impa's home had been decidedly dismissed for the night... 

Link had seen Paya sneak away into her home just before the party had started to end, and just before that had happened, Link had seen Impa insist on giving the girl a cup of the spiced juices to take with her... Link had the feeling that it would take more than 'liquid courage' to help someone like Paya do something like this, though...

When he opened the door to the shrine, she was sitting there in the middle of the room, staring at the cup she'd been given. When he suddenly came in, she gasped at the sight of him, panicked, and quickly tried to take a big gulp. She managed to get it down her throat, but then she started to cough so harshly afterwards that she had to put the rest of the cup back down before she spilled it...

Link rubbed the back of his neck, trying to smile and alleviate some of the awkwardness. "Don't force yourself to try to drink the rest if you can't... It won't make you any braver, that's more or less just a myth. It will only make you sick."

He sat down then, not far from her, casually crossing his knees on a nearby pillow, and resting his face in his hands while his elbows rested on his knees. Link didn't truly feel as casual as he looked at the moment, but he certainly wasn't nervous either. Impa was telling the truth that no one here would force something on him, but... How were they expecting someone like Paya to even SUGGEST it...?

She certainly didn't look very confident at the moment. This was just getting more and more awkward. Link of course was never going to do it with a woman that wasn't 100% enthusiastic about him, and though Paya pretty clearly seemed to have some sort of feelings or attraction to Link, that was a far cry from asking her to do this now...

Link was so deep in thought wondering what Paya was finally going to say and how to respond, that he was almost caught off guard when she finally did hesitantly raise her voice. "U-Um... M-Master Link... I-I was told... Th-That I sh-should offer you a b-back rub tonight... In order that you m-might be more rested... B-Before the fight with G-Ganon..."

He glanced over at her... Baby steps. Of course Paya would have to start with baby steps. But Link so wasn't used to that approach... When people wanted something from him, they usually just outright asked him. If it wasn't just as easy for them to give him something, he didn't want it. He could only be so blunt with Paya though. He didn't want to shame her or turn her into a crying mess... "Well... I'm not sure I like that you were TOLD to do it, but... I would certainly appreciate having my back worked on a bit before I go into battle, if it's okay with you. I will ignore any pain to rescue Zelda, but admittedly back pain is one of the hardest kinds to ignore..."

He still felt a little awkward about it but he also felt that accepting at least this was only polite, and it gave them the chance to be close enough to really speak on a personal level. The massage itself only did so much for Link, as Paya's slender and uncertain hands could only dig so deep into his hardened muscles, no offense to her but Gerudo women were the best at that, but just the contact itself was reassuring to him. After a short while though, even Paya's light touches started to become shaky and uncertain, and finally Link had to just come out and say what was on his mind. "Paya... Listen. I know they asked you to do more than a massage for me tonight... But I don't want anything that's not truly given enthusiastically, especially not something like that. Please don't be offended, you're one of the most beautiful girls I've ever met, but..."

Paya very suddenly took her hands back, rushed to scurry around to the front of him, and did a deep bow, with her forehead to the immaculately clean floors. Words suddenly rushed from her mouth like the winds blowing from an incoming storm, "M-M-MASTER LINK--! P-PLEASE... P-P-Please, just let me explain myself... Let me explain EVERYTHING... I promise, no, I s-swear I'll be c-completely honest with you..."

He slowly nodded... He knew this was a place of secrecy and hiding, but he truly believed that if anyone would be completely honest with him here and now, it was her... "Alright, Paya... Please go ahead."

She kept her forehead to the floor, too shy to lift her eyes while she was saying what she was about to, "I know... What you surely m-must think of this tradition... They speak of ancestors of mine who successfully posed as simple farmgirls or barmaids, who would bed the hero and then raise the child in a secret, secure place... They spoke of these women like they were heroes in their own way, but... I always just thought they were CREEPY! I think this whole tradition is CREEPY! It's outdated, and intrusive, and makes so many assumptions about you... I've already tried to speak to the elders about my concerns before, but... They have always been very insistant upon the importance of the ritual, in the past and now... And when I try to speak of my worries... If I do not word things very, very carefully, they will often g-get angry, or ashamed of me... They believe it to not just be the easiest task, but the one that will bring the most honor. Grandmother and mother waited all their lives for the chance to fulfill it. It was just my luck that I was born at such a 'lucky and auspicious' time... T-To fail this task would bring great shame, but... To not even try? I would be banished for such impudence... P-Please Master Link... I already know I will fail. I wouldn't insult you or make you uncomfortable by even trying, and I wouldn't dare to make assumptions about you. I would just be most grateful... If you would tell the elders that I at least tried, that I at l-least offered... B-By all means... If there was anything you wanted from me, y-you could have it!" She burst out, then quickly covered her mouth with both hands, burning red. "B-But I know... I-I have nothing I could offer that you would want..."

Easy? Really? Of course a bunch of old men would go along with that but he was a little surprised with Impa... She was always pretty sweet and gentle with Paya, more than less even trying to be considerate of her between the teasing, but when it came right down to it, not only had Impa herself been prepared to fulfill this role for years (and no Link was NOT gonna think too hard about that...) so had her own daughter... If she was willing to ask her own daughter to do this too, then of course she had the same expectation of Paya. But was nobody actually considering what it would be like to have actually REALLY do this from Paya's position...? Clearly not. This was getting depressing, really, but Link was determined to do and ask whatever he had to to help this poor girl, somehow... So he started by getting more information. "Paya... Forgive me if any of this sounds crude, but I'm just trying to understand things better and see what I can do to help most in this situation... If this is something you truly have no desire to do at all, you would have run away, right? But you're scared of banishment... It is only because you're scared of being left alone? If that was the case I would be happy to accompany you to another village, like Hateno or maybe Gerudo Town...? It would be a big change, but you could leave all the traditions and expectations behind..."

He could see from the lingering sadness in her eyes that it wouldn't work before she even answered, "Even if I wanted to go, that would only make things worse, I'm afraid... Abandoning my post, running away... It would be seen as even more impudent than a simple refusal or inability. But besides that... Kakariko, and her people... Regardless of this, I will always be loyal to them, and I wish to stay living here... A-And... I-It's not -exactly- that I don't want to--I MEAN, th-that is to say, of course, that surely -any-girl would want to, y-you know! B-Because y-you're just... SO VALIANT! AND HANDSOME!!" She finally forced herself to blurt out, looking like she'd run a marathon after doing so... "S-S-SO! I-IT DOESN'T MAKE SENSE THEN! Th-That is, the ritual! The whole reason for it... Is t-to ensure a p-progeny from the hero if he is of age before the final battle, as a f-failsafe, because obviously if the hero ever died as a child another hero was still chosen, but also... When I saw you for the first time, those years ago... I still promised to uphold my vows of ch-chastity of course, b-but... F-Forgive me if this is in fact untrue, o-or just not my place to say, b-but... I couldn't help but think to myself, that surely I wouldn't be truly needed... That s-surely... A m-man as h-handsome as you would... P-Probably have at least a few much more beautiful women make you a... S-Similar offer..."

By then she had worked herself up into another deep blush, and Link fanned her from a short distance to cool and calm her own, mentioning as he did so, "Well, thank YOU, at least, Paya, for that much deserved show of confidence... Maybe some past heroes weren't able to muster the confidence or the time to land a date but I assure you that's not me... Not to, erm, brag, but well... Yeah, I've maybe been with a few... Y-Yeah..." He ended that a little awkwardly and a LOT ambiguously, but thankfully Paya didn't seem to either notice or want to pry much... "Though I wouldn't say any one person was more beautiful than the other... But I meant it when I said you're one of the most beautiful I've met, too, Paya. Regardless of if I wanted to go that far, I still think you are a beautiful woman, so please don't doubt yourself at least..."

She shook her head, although she was trying to agree with him. Her eyes started to look a little strangely faraway... "Th-Thank you Master Link... It is said... That long ago, the Sheikah made their hair as white as paper, as a symbol to the royal family that we were pure enough to be in their presence, and that we could be trusted, like human parchment or living books, to save knowledge in times where it might elsewise have been destroyed and lost to the ages... And so I, as an extension of that purpose, but devoted to the sword of legend and whatever hand that wields it, have always been told that I... That I am to be l-like... Like a canvas for the hero... That if I c-could... Secure your blessings... And use ancient magic to secure a male progeny in your likeness... The elders said that if I succeeded, I would no longer be a blank canvas, but a masterpiece, a work of art created and signed by the hero himself, a work to be admired for generations... And, j-just to be completely honest with you M-Master Link... They promised me a physical reward if I were to do this, b-but I promise, that's not the real reason I want to do this! I mean... B-Besides that fact that you ARE so handsome...! Besides that... I want my village to be proud of me, I want to do what they've asked of me... I just want things to be as peaceful as possible. And I've never been a fighter at all... I've always been happiest doing my duty, and creating things that people need anyways, so why not do what, well, I probably would have done anyways...? I just... I just want my role to finally be fulfilled! I don't want to be some daring rebel, I just want do this thing that everyone wants of me so much so I can just be free to be myself and be BY myself afterwards! Honest, Master Link, I promise I'd be just as fine living in the little shack at the end of the village as I would be in the big house they say they plan to build me overlooking the whole village, even over Impa's -- But I don't NEED that! All I've really been wanting... Is just a place to finally be by myself... With no one constantly... ALWAYS... Watching me..."

Aaah... Now everything was starting to make sense to him... And besides it making a lot of sense for Paya... Link was relating pretty hard to the young woman now, too... Like Paya said, she was no fighter, but other than that, she actually really understood the kind of mental stress he'd always been under his whole life. He suddenly felt a striking sort of kinship with her... And besides that... He just plain felt sorry for her. A blank canvas... Really? Was that what Impa and her daughter had been told all along too... Was Impa now sitting there believing herself to be a forever blank canvas, destined to never be considered art... Maybe that was why she was okay with it... She believed Paya to be getting a rare chance that slipped past her and many others... Maybe that was too poetic for a hero, but it didn't sit well with Link... Not for Impa, or Paya, or any other woman who had been made to believe such soul-crushing things... And all to support the Royal Family, the same one that kept Zelda so trapped and unhappy for so long... Link had been thinking for a while that maybe not everything the royal family and their armies did was justified in history, but this was really putting the icing on that cake...

He chuckled a bit dryly to himself there, "Well then... Obviously at the very least they know it's not truly such an easy task, if they're willing to offer you such a grand reward for it..."

Paya's face suddenly scrunched up, and a small snort of laughter escaped her too. Blushing terribly after, she couldn't help but shyly admit, "I... I've always wanted to say something like that... I've always thought it, but I'd never have the nerve to really say it to them... I've always admired how you can just speak your mind the way you do..."

Link's eyes drifted off for a moment, looking right through the old tapestry as he remembered days long past. "...I actually... Wasn't really always like this though, you know... Believe it or not I used to be a lot more like you, Paya. I almost never spoke. I felt almost shy to sometimes. Like surely no one wanted to hear what I had to say, unless it was relevant to a mission... It's only since I woke up here, and now... That I've really started to talk a lot again, like I did back when I was a kid. I remember running my mouth for hours to my mother and sister about dreams I had when I was a kid, but after dad put me in training... Well, daydreaming CAN get you killed, it's not a good habit to indulge in TOO much, but... I guess I missed that kid I used to be almost as much as I miss the family I used to have back then... Maybe that's why I've been running my mouth and acting more like a dumb kid ever since I woke up here, besides the fact that I didn't -remember- being a stiff, uptight knight at first... Maybe it's because... It's the only way to ever be anywhere close to those memories again..." 

He looked over towards Paya again, but his eyes were still more on the white of her skirt than her. That dress... It almost kind of reminded him of Zelda's, the last time he'd seen her... "I've asked nearly every elder I've met if they've heard of my sister, but... None of them have... My mother left this world when I was younger. My father... I confirmed in Hateno that he fell trying to aid me at the fated battle for Hyrule Castle, all those years ago... I just wish I knew what happened to my sister... No one in Hateno knows what happened to her... That hurts more than anything, besides the fact that I failed Zelda the first time... But I failed her being that stiff, stubborn knight I tried to force myself to be, so... What more have I got to lose just trying to be myself this time...?" He shrugged at that. "I don't know... Maybe that's just a dumb excuse... I'll probably have to go back to keeping my mouth shut more often, once I finally save Zelda... Wouldn't want to embarrass her or put her in danger, after all..."

To his surprise though, Paya, so normally shy and difficult to get to say anything, let alone her real feelings, suddenly burst out at him, "M-Master Link! Forgive me, but I think you're wrong! I don't think Princess Zelda would want that at all... She waited so long to see you again... Don't you think she deserves to finally meet the real you? And... I don't think you failed her trying to be a stiff, stubborn knight... I-I still don't think you failed her at all, b-but... Maybe... You feel that way, because... You almost gave up your life for her, but if she never really knew you... It just seems like that would have been a waste... You faced all those terrifying enemies, but... I guess the heart of a woman is what really makes men nervous..."

She suddenly seemed to realize all that she had just said, and erupted into a shameful blush, hiding her face in her hands, "AH--! I'm so sorry, I spoke too much, I--!"

"You're right..." Link admitted then, smiling back up at her despite how much the truth hurt his heart. The stoic, stubborn knight he used to be would have denied it right away, would never admit to this, but... "You're absolutely right, Paya... I was never scared of the monsters. I was never really even scared of dying. I was scared of the princess herself. I was scared of Zelda... I was scared I would fail her, I was scared I would disappoint her... She already had so much pressure on her own shoulders, and I know my own successes made her feel like a failure... I'm sure I didn't make it easier on her, being such a nervous wreck despite my supposed success... I still don't know if she'd LIKE the real me, but... After everything she went through and sacrificed, you're right that she at least DESERVED to know the real me... Besides, who knows... Maybe knowing what a dumbass I really was deep down would have made her feel less self-conscious..."

Paya's hands suddenly moved to cover her mouth. She wasn't offended by his language though, she was snorting and failing at containing a laugh behind her hand. People never said such words around her before, but it was... Thrilling! She couldn't help but dare to respond truthfully, since she was sure Link wouldn't mind her real honesty by now, "You know, I... I think you're right!" 

Link laughed outright at that, encouraging Paya to laugh more openly at her own joke too. The two of them were all smiles for several seconds, forgetting if just for an instant all the worries and expectations around them...

But then Paya blushed and looked away, "You're actually very clever... You just need to be more confident. I know I shouldn't say that to anyone myself, considering how little confidence I have myself, but..."

Feeling brave enough to tell her the truth now too, Link argued gently back at that, "Well, you have so little confidence because no one here ever LET you be confident! Calling you a blank canvas, telling you that you needed someone else to paint over your own life and make you a masterpiece -- You already are one! You'd have plenty of confidence if people had just told you that instead..."

She blushed bright red, but kept silent to herself, seemingly not wanting to shame any of her peers or family even if she did agree... To an extent. He could see in her uncertain eyes that she still didn't see herself as art of any kind... He knew he had to do SOMETHING to erase that belief, but what...

Suddenly it came to him. "Paya? Do you remember telling me about the Great Fairy Fountain where Cotera resides? You've been there yourself, right?" She told him about it before, and it wasn't that far at all, so he assumed--

"Oh... Not really...?" WHAT? "I mean... I've been escorted to the shrine overlooking the village before, for a sacred rite and to pray for Cotera, but we never actually ventured deep enough into the forest to find Cotera's spring..."

Link quickly insisted, "But--It's not even that far? That forest isn't THAT big? You--You should totally come with me to go see it! Tonight!" 

Paya's eyes went big, shocked at the sudden suggestion, "Eh--?! G-Go with you, i-into the forest--?"

Link put his hands on his hips, looking insistent, "Well, how can you say you've ever really prayed for Cotera if you never visited her directly? I bet she couldn't even hear you that far away..." He sighed a little dramatically there. 

Paya covered her mouth in embarrassment, but whispered through the fingers nonetheless, "Ah... Y-You're probably right, poor Cotera... B-But... I've never been all the way outside of the village before... E-Especially alone at night, in the forest, with a MAN--!" She suddenly 'eeped' and quieted herself before she said anything too loud. "I-I mean... I know that it's my d-duty, that you're literally the only m-man in the world my tribe would be be okay with m-me visiting like that... B-But, it's not them I know I should consider first, at least, in my humble opinion... My tribe considers practical matters first, what one can see with one's own eye, not those of the heart, but... It's just, I always thought to myself... W-Well, w-what about the p-princess...? The rumors always claimed that y-you, and the p-princess... Well, that you had a special relationship, n-not just that of princess and knight... A-And, if that's the case, I wouldn't want to come between you two... I know there were other girls too, but they can come and go wherever they please. But m-me...? It's my duty to stay here in Kakariko, and my duty to serve the royal blood... So if doing such a thing would upset the princess, I of course wouldn't want to do anything to hurt her..." She left off there, but Link understood -- Pissing off a princess would already be a dumb idea in general but especially if people always knew where to find you...

But Link quickly assured her, "Princess Zelda isn't like that... She never was... Actually, you two are a lot alike, because well, Zelda and IMPA were a lot alike back then, of course. You know, if I had my memory back when I first met you I would have mistaken you for Impa, you look so much alike. Impa was a little more of a go-getter but she was just as cautious as you. Well, almost... You're even more cautious than Impa was, but of course that's completely understandable... In any case, Zelda always had too many troubles to worry about such things for herself, let alone to have the time to worry about others stealing someone from her. Princess Mipha herself, who was known to be extra shy like you Paya, once very nearly told Princess Zelda about her feelings for me, one time. If we hadn't been attacked at just the wrong time, I'm sure she would have. If someone as shy and reserved as Mipha felt comfortable enough to almost tell Zelda what we shared, I have no doubt that Zelda was never the jealous type. If she was, Mipha would have surely never even uttered it... And besides that... Zelda would understand what you're going through better than most would, too. She was always tied to tradition, held to expectations. Like every queen before her she was expected to someday marry and bear a daughter for the kingdom too, in addition to all the hardships they already asked her to endure... I think the two of you will have nothing but things in common when you finally get to meet each other... Though to be honest... I think Zelda already gave you her blessing today, in fact... Paya, at the goddess statue's spring, did you--?" He suddenly couldn't resist asking her anymore...

She blurted out, "AH! Y-You saw her too?! I was so sure I must have been daydreaming too much again, nobody else seemed to see her...?"

He shook his head at that... Seemed to be reassuring himself now with his next words, not just her... "I think that was her way of giving you her blessing, telling you it was alright... The truth is... Regardless of who I love, or who Zelda might love... We are bound to each other not just by the roles of knight and princess... We are bound by our souls..." He was surprisingly kind of just realizing this fully himself, despite knowing it, looking into the third eye on Paya's forehead he suddenly fully felt it, the confidence that he could get her back, and WHY, damn it -- She was HIS and he was HERS, that blasted boar had tried so many times to break that, and maybe in some realities he had, but not in THIS one, and he swore he would see to it, if by the skin of his teeth and on determination alone, they WOULD be there to face the future together again. One with a clear sky, one where malice was going extinct and silent princesses were thriving... "We truly are.... Soulmates. We'll always find a way to be together again, no matter what... So of course over all those years we'll make other friends, even have whole armies or kingdoms of them after enough years have gone by... Basically? Nah, neither of us are the jealous types. But... Does it bother YOU, Paya? Be honest. Would you rather be with someone as chaste as you, does my experience bother you? I'll be completely honest with you first -- I've been with a virgin like you before," It wasn't assuming, it was OBVIOUS. "But my other lovers were more experienced too... Does that bother you?"

Paya blushed deeply at his utter candidness, but managed to shake her head 'no', despite cleverly understanding why Link was being so ambiguous about the gender of his lovers... "I-It's actually... Sort of... A relief! B-Both that I can rely on y-your experience, and w-well... I'm glad I d-don't have to worry about d-disappointing you on your f-first t-time!"

Link snorted and outright rolled his eyes at that, sighing as he remembered fondly, "I was so nervous my first time, Princess Mipha had me a wreck in her hands in no time... Trust me, a girl like you could never disappoint me, now or then. Anyways... I also just figured, if you wanted to go through this with me, well... The Great Fairy Fountain just sounded like a much more romantic spot than, well... Your grandmother's house..."

Paya's face suddenly turned a different kind of mortified, and she quickly agreed, "OH! O-Of course, Master Link, it's just, well, I don't expect anyone to be out tonight that might see us, b-but then they don't expect me to be out either, s-so--?"

Link nudged her gently his his elbow to hers, and flashed her a rare cocky smile. "Hey. I'm not just anybody, remember? I know a special secret Hero way to get out outta town without anyone being the wiser. You up for it, Paya~?"

What girl wouldn't be, seeing a face like that looking at them...? "Haah.... O-Okay, Master Link, I... I trust you..." She slowly forced herself to reply, crouching a bit, almost trying to seem smaller even though she was much taller than him. Like most women and people in general were, good thing he was so into that...

Not letting her make herself too much smaller, he got in front of her, and motioned over his shoulder to his back. "Get on. Don't worry, you won't be too heavy. As long as you can keep your hold on me and keep my hands free I can pull it off -- You can do that, right?"

His vague words made her worry a little, but she still trusted him like she said, of course she trusted him, still alive after all this time and all he'd done... He was going to get Zelda back, and if he could do that, then she could surely do this... "Yes, Master Link. I'm strong enough to carry myself, you can trust me too..."

He grinned back at her, noticing but not mentioning that she hadn't stuttered at all through that last sentence. He trusted her too... So as soon as she wrapped her arms and legs around his torso, blushing but holding on as tight as she could, Link stiffly walked to the front door. As soon as he was outside, he used Revali's Gale with the two of them together, the first time he'd ever done that admittedly but thankfully Revali seemed to put just a little oomph in it than usual and got the two of them safely to the shrine's hill without dilemma. 

Paya was panting hard but otherwise completely unharmed by the experience. Though her hair was already a bit mussy and fussy now... Link smirked, bowing to the shrine as they passed as an excuse to flip his own always messy hair to make it messier, so she wouldn't feel quite as embarrassed while she tried to fix her own locks to at least slightly resemble her previous fanciness. 

"Hehe, sorry, but yanno I prefer the 'natural' look anyways?" Link tried to offer, then slyly but also shyly suggested, "Also, Paya, I was thinking... When we get to the spring, I'm all too certain Cotera would be more than fine with us taking a dip in her fountain's waters after offering her a blessing and a tribute. Of course I'm sure they already bathed you, I was just thinking though, that it might be fun to go for a swim together first, you know, to get used to seeing each other first before we decide if we want to touch after all? And I of course would completely understand if you wanted to back out at any time..."

Paya's steps slowed a little on the upward slope, but she kept going. Though Link could also see her slow steps were from her legs starting to shake... "Ah... Of course Master Link... I'm... Completely fine with your wishes..." She said, slowly, but still managing not to stutter. "I just hope Cotera... Is really okay... W-With..." 

She stumbled a little with her words there, so Link took over more confidently, as they started heading into the forest, "Ah, trust me, Cotera will be MORE than fine with it. I'll offer the tribute, don't worry about that, but she'll be happy just to see us. The Great Fairies are all kind of like Lil Old Ladies, except, yanno, not little at all and also they look young and super beautiful and mystical and whatnot? But otherwise they're similar in that they're just lonely and really want to be visited. They like a little present and if you bring one they'll likely gift you something good in return. Just all around pretty, pleasant gals, so I see no reason they wouldn't like you too~"

Paya was just starting to worry that hopefully Link didn't see her as a 'lil old lady', but he continued, "I really like talking to those old gals, and the old men too it's just women are more cautious and more likely to live longer, and bless them for it, they're like Sheikah in miniature, as far as preserving history, you know. The Sheikah might remember the big stuff but the little stuff can add up to be pretty important too... I've learned and remembered more thanks to them than anyone else. I could sit and listen to them all day if I didn't have to keep going, but if not for them I would have been completely lost in the first place!" Well... At least if he DID see her that way, he still liked and appreciated her, she mused to herself...

Just like Link had said, it didn't take them long at all to find the fountain, and Paya almost sucked in a gasp at the sight of its beauty, but quickly ducked down and covered her mouth as she was used to when she saw the little glowing fairies, instinctively guessing correctly that Link would want to sneak up on them as he was now doing.

Catching the first one that came near, he let the others go free and simply enjoyed a 'free' healing, to make sure there wasn't any cuts or bruises he'd forgotten about in the last few weeks. There was usually a few. Then he turned to Paya and beckoned her nearer with a bouquet of flowers in the other hand that he had secretly gathered along the way too. Mostly blue nightshades, but with a single rare Silent Princess in the middle. "Here, Paya... And just so you know, this fountain, and the flowers in this bouquet...? It's how I see you Paya... As a masterpiece, perfect as is, but always even better with company..."

She was stunned into silence for a moment, barely finding the strength to lift her shaking hands and take the bouquet from him. "Ah... A Silent Princess...? Are you sure...? Th-They're so rare..."

Link nodded, "They are, but you know, they're still growing far more plentifully than they did in my day... Ugh, that made me sound old, but--I'm certain the world can spare just one for a woman as rare and unique as you..."

Paya burned bright red and looked away, "Th-Thank you Master Link, I'll press them later and cherish them forever! For now I'll just set it aside..." She let him know placing the bundle nearby a tree and some bright green stamella mushrooms. 

Then the two of them stepped forward together on the mushroom-pads, up to the lip of the spring, where Cotera quicky and eagerly sprang forth, to Paya's utter amazement at all the glittering scales and gleaming jewels. "OHOOOO~! Link, sweetie, you have a guest today~! A lovely MAIDEN~!?"

Link quickly interjected to explain for Paya before she started to stammer again, "Indeed, Cotera! A very special guest! Paya here is the shrine maiden of Kakariko. Unfortunately they were unable to visit you all the way here because they had to protect the key to the nearby shrine from Yiga soldiers while I was away for a hundred years... Sooo partially my fault, sorry, BUT, now that I finally solved that little problem with the Yiga, I figured I'd bring Paya so she could finally meet you in person. Also, I brought you a little extra shiny tribute today for being such a big help the last time I came by~?"

Cotera batted her eyes at him for that. "Oooh, indeed? How thoughtful Link dear, yes I -did- hear through the waters deep below that my sisters were rather greedy and asked you for really big tributes, but you still gave it to them! How generous you were Linky~~"

Aha~ Well, that was a hint he couldn't ignore! So he quickly pulled out his wallet and grabbed a handful of the gold and silver and purple ones, throwing them into the fountain, making the Great Fairy's eyes go wide and sparkly. "Ooooh~! How pretty my fountain is now~!! It's overflowing with power~! You're too kind, dear Linky~ And you, Paya, was it?" She suddenly turned to the mostly red and white maiden, who bowed deep at the sudden acknowledgement, knocking her diamond circlet loose from her head again. But this time it came completely off, falling from her hair and into the fountain.

The Great Fairy blinked, "Oh~? Was that an offering too, dear~?"

...Aaactually that WAS a precious heirloom passed down for generations... Buuut Paya was NOT about to work up the nerve to ask for it back if the Great Cotera wanted it, she had to just trust that surely her people would understand... Again... "Y-Yes! Of course! I hope you enjoy it, ma'am!"

"Ooooh~~~ You're BOTH too kind~!" Cotera replied, seeming pleased as she plucked up the diamond circlet and put it on one of her only free fingers as a ring. "Now then~! Is there anything I can do for the two of you on this beautiful and, ahem~... Rather -romantic- moonlit night~~??" She inquired suddenly, her voice a little huskier than usual, sounding a bit like her sandy desert sister for a second...

Link blushed and rubbed behind his head, "Well actually Cotera, if it wouldn't be too much to ask, I was wondering if it would be alright with you to let Paya and I take a dip in your fountain before I return her home? Since she came all this way~?" He added pleadingly like the Great Fairies often did, batting his eyes back at her. 

Of course she couldn't deny him anything either, let alone such a humble and yet exciting request. "OHOOOOO~! I see, I see! Why of COOOOURSE, after all, what's a fountain for if not for a lil DIP~? I wouldn't let just anyone, but a champion and a chaste maiden~? I can make an exception tonight, I think! DO enjoy yourselves you two, and don't worry, I won't disturb you at ALL~! OHOHOHOOO~! BYEEEEEEEE~!"

Diving back down deep into her pool, Cotera left the two of them alone then, Link blushing at least half as bad as Paya as he turned back to her again, still sheepishly rubbing his head, "Aha, well, I think we're alone now... And Cotera gave us her permission after all, so... Do I still have yours, Paya? Do you want to proceed...?" With a girl as shy as her, he felt he ought to ask before even getting undressed, let alone before beginning anything... 

Predictably, she covered her eyes with her hands and blushed even harder with full crimson color, "Y-Y-Yes... I'm s-still sure, I'm j-just s-so n-nervous...! I can't believe... We're really s-so c-close...! I... I WAS told the basics, about what to expect, b-but... I barely got through even that without passing out from embarrassment! I just hope my nervousness won't make things difficult, Master Link..."

Maybe not the case for some guys, but to be honest it WAS kind of a problem for Link... He got the idea that Paya didn't want it to be, but it was still going to be if she didn't ease up at least a bit... Link had a bit of an idea what to do about it, well, he had one idea anyways, and if it didn't work, well, Link might have to have a different kind of talk with Paya then, about maybe giving Gerudo Town a try... "Hey, Paya... Would you mind if I asked you for a hug? I used to get them from my mom and sister a lot as a kid... My dad too, a few times when I was really young... I distanced myself from it as a teen when I went into training, but now as an adult it's really hard to find someone to hug when it feels like I really need one... What about you Paya, did Impa or your parents hug you much as a kid?"

She swallowed against her own dry throat and nodded, though her eyes looked much sadder after he brought up her parents. "I... Also remember my parents and grandmother Impa hugging me, when I was little... My parents p-passed when I was still young though... Since becoming an adult, grandmother tends to just pat me on the back when I do well... B-But, of course I wouldn't at all mind a hug from you, Master Link!"

Oh yes. And THAT... "Paya... Please, if you wouldn't mind, I understand if you feel more comfortable keeping it up in the village, but at least here, tonight... Would you just call me 'Link'?"

She somehow managed to blush harder than ever at that, and stammered in shock for a moment or two before finally replying, "Wha--? Aaah... Okay... Of course, whatever you want, L-L-Link..." She steeled herself and took a deep breath, "Link... Please, go ahead..."

He didn't waste any more time, but he moved slow, taking a short step forward into her personal space, then inching his arms around her shivering frame until he finally had his arms enclosed around her. She was shaking, of course, but it seemed that the closer he got to her, the more the shaking actually calmed a bit... And when he finally pulled her in, chest to chest, and laid his head down on her shoulder and neck, she suddenly stopped shaking altogether, and let out a deep sigh. Her arms folded around his back, she dug her head against his opposite shoulder and neck, and she squeezed him as tight as he dared to squeeze her...

Link began to murmer in her ear after a moment or two, "You know... If everything turns out alright in the end... I kind of actually find myself hoping one of you gals get the child you were asking for too... I'd tell Zelda about everything, because she knows she'll always come first, but... I really want to meet them... I want to give them a big hug, just like this... I really hope I'll have time to teach them some things and spend time with them too, but at the very least... I just want them to have some of these to remember me by..."

Paya tightened her arms around him, her eyes welling up with water. "M-Ma... I m-mean... L-Link... Please... Don't let things trouble you so... It might not mean much from me but... I... I really truly believe in you, Link! I believe you'll save her, your princess, your destiny--I believe you'll get her back for all of us, and that you'll come back to us too! You'll come back safe, and whole, and... Free... And when you do... Well, I don't know about the other girls, but... I know I'll be waiting for you to come back and visit us. The Sheikah magic will definitely ensure conception of a male heir..."

Link wanted to believe most of that would be true, but that last part gave him pause, "Does it... Have to, though? I just can't help but feel such an important thing should be left to chance... Everything else in life we get to choose, but shouldn't the gods choose that for us?"

Paya took a step back and looked down at her own belly. "I... Simply learned the spell when they told me to, I never really thought about it... I think you're probably right though... No matter what, it is only still my duty if you approve it, so... If the others in the village get what they want at all, it's only at your discretion. As long as the heir is still your blood, I can't see how they could complain... I... I would not let them, Link!" She suddenly insisted, not shy, but even a little indignant at the thought. "If a daughter is born by us then she's just as sacred as a boy would have been! They'll either accept both of us or we'll... We'll find somewhere that does!" 

Well, so that's what it came to... Paya wasn't just blindly obedient after all. She had her own feelings and desires, she was just a peaceable person who wanted to avoid turmoil and help out. But when it came right down to it... She WOULD fight, in her own way, for what was truly right too. That made Link smile, as much as her belief in him did... It was even better to know she really DID believe in herself too, deep down...

"I'm sure it won't be a problem either way, Paya." Link soothed her, patting her shoulder as he stepped back. "But I'm glad to know you'll be a good and devoted mother no matter what... Now then..." He blushed as he took as looked down at his clothes, the green-dyed Hylian hood set. The hood was already pulled back, and he unclasped it at the neck then, letting it fall. "Is it... Okay if the two of us go for that swim now...?"

She ducked her head down, but she nodded quickly... He found himself a little nervous like her, but excited and hopeful... He couldn't help but feel like he did that night over a hundred years ago, with Mipha... One person a virgin, the other more experienced, going for a swim together... The both of them such shy people but trying their best for each other... It was a lot like it was back then. He suddenly remembered it more clearly than ever too. Most of it had come back in Zora's Domain, but being with Paya tonight... He suddenly remembered how he'd shed a tear, that very first time... Mipha had wiped it away, and he had smiled for her to let her know it was alright...

Swallowing against a lump in his throat, Link began to pull off his gloves and then his shirt off over his head... Soon he was bare-chested before Paya, who was only barely just starting to work the nerve to look past her fingers. Link glanced up at the eyes between them, "...Everything look okay to you so far? If not I'll put everything back on, but if you do like everything, I can keep going...?"

Her fingers slowly curled into balled up fists under her eyes, allowing herself to look fully at least, if still too shy to let the blush on her cheeks be free... "I... Like it... You can k-keep going..."

Link took in and then let out a nervous breath. "Alright..." He nodded, and before he lost his nerve around her, he quickly but not TOO quickly shimmied and then pulled his trousers down for her, revealing his cock underneath, still shy because neither of them were still sure yer how everyone would get along... Hopefully she wouldn't all out pass out, please goddesses don't do that at least...

She didn't but she did definitely look like her knees were getting shaky as soon as he kicked off his boots and stood completely naked there... He let everything, well, hang out, for just a few seconds, but then he got shy and covered mostly up with one hand... "Is it... Still alright, P-Paya...?" Oh gods, now HE was stuttering... She seriously had him feeling like a damn virgin himself again... 

Her eyes just barely flicked over to the general direction of his naked form before quickly focusing on a tree in the completely opposite direction... It took her an extra minute to think of what to say, and another extra one to work the nerve to say it, but finally she managed, "It... I mean... Th-They always c-compared it to a sword... I always knew it wouldn't look exactly like a sword, b-but... I'm j-just so glad it's not p-p-pointy--!"

Link's eyes went completely wide and he couldn't help but exclaim at that, "Good GODDESSES, no WONDER you were so nervous all this time--!" SERIOUSLY, Sheikah Tribe? You guys can record every detail of the past but you can't come up with better sex education than THAT?? Then again, maybe that was some kind of fucked up tactic to keep the chosen female chaste, ugh... 

Paya flushed at her own ignorance, even though it couldn't be helped... "I-I'm sorry..." She apologized, even though it wasn't her that should offer it.

Link just sighed and shook his head, "Listen... I'm gonna get into the fountain, give myself a soak for about half an hour... I'll turn my back to you while I'm in, and you can either join me when you're ready, or you can make your way back home. Whatever you're most comfortable with. I won't be disappointed no matter what you choose, promise." He told her calmly, before doing just what he said and slipping into the fountain feet-first, re-emerging, and then leaning his back against one of the mushrooms and stretching his arms out. 

At first there was silence for a moment or two. then some rustling.... But the rustling wasn't moving away, it stayed in one spot... Paya was taking off her clothes... 

He waited patiently, and after a few more moments he could feel her form cautiously advancing towards him. He stayed silent, and finally after an agonizing few minutes she managed to cross the five feet or so to stand almost directly behind him, just a step off to the side. "M... L-Link...?"

He didn't move yet, but he acknowledged her, "Yes?"

She seemed unsure of what she was about to say next, and admittedly it came out almost sounding rehearsed... "I-If... If you desire t-to, y-you may... Inspect me f-first..."

He shrugged without even looking around. "I don't desire to do anything that would make you uncomfortable. And I don't need to inspect you because I already know I can trust you..." As if he actually needed to get a magnifying glass to tell that Paya was telling the truth about being a virgin, pft... To drive the point home, he asked her in turn, "Why, do you want to inspect me again? Didn't seem like you got too good a look last time, so..."

She began to sputter again, so he dropped the light teasing right away, and with a chuckle, he motioned idly to the water next to him. "LIsten, Paya... Can you do me a favor, and just... Abandon all expectations, forget everything you've ever been told, and just get in the water with me...?"

Thankfully staying calm seemed to work on her nerves, and she slowly sat down on the rim of the giant mushroom caps, and slid inside the water next to him, letting herself sink until only her nose and face above it was emerging from the fountain. Still though, she was right next to him, so... That was progress!

Link leaned back and relaxed, waiting for Paya to hopefully do the same. He trusted that she'd call this all off and decline if she really didn't want to, but it seemed much more like she really DID want to, just... Clearly any seduction classes any former sheikah maidens had endured had been deemed too hazardous to Paya's health...

Moving with deliberate slowness, Link let out a fake yawn and raised his hands up in a stretch, idly letting on arm fall on the mushroom just behind Paya... Who allowed it, and pulled herself up just the slightest, so that the back of his arm would touch her back and neck... The water was now at the level of her chin, freeing her lips to speak, which she hesitantly did, after a moment, "Um... Link...?"

He opened one eye, "Yeah?"

"Y-You... Said you'd done this before...? Is it okay if I ask... W-What were the others like? What did they do that got your attention like that...?"

She seemed really genuinely curious about it. But it also seemed like she was looking for some kind of sign to take, or a lead to follow. To combat that, he simply answered most honestly, "Well... They were just themselves... They reached out to me, and if I liked them, I took them by the hand for a while... I couldn't stay with any of them, because I had to keep moving, to find my true destiny, the princess, but... I still... I still love everyone I loved. I don't think that will ever change, even if we never see each other again, though I hope we will... Also... Having waited over a hundred years for me... I'm sure Zelda would appreciate it more if I had a bunch of good stories to tell her once I get her back, rather than any more expectations of her that she had enough of getting a hundred years ago... When I free her, I want her to be as truly free and wild as I've gotten to be the last few years since waking up here... She deserves that too... If she wants me? Of course she can have me, and anything else she wants, after everything she's done and all she's sacrificed, I'll give or get her anything, but... If she doesn't even want me by her side, if that's too painful a reminder and she'd rather I just protect her from afar, I'd do that too..."

He then looked back over at Paya, who blushed and held her arms up in front of her bosom instinctively as he told her, "You deserve that kind of freedom too... Though I understand if you're more the type to prefer staying in a nice safe home... I get a lot of people are like that and don't really like to travel much, especially since it's so dangerous right now, but... I hope once I finally get rid of the last of Ganon's influence and the worst of the monsters, people will travel more... When that day comes to pass Paya, is there any place in the world you've ever wanted to go if you could?"

Her eyes went big at that question. That was obviously something no one had ever even thought to ask her before. Hey gee Miss Shrine Maiden who can never leave her shrine's village, where would you go if you could go anywhere in the world? So yeah, he didn't mind the sputtering this time, and gave her an extra minute to think about it before finally shyly replying, "W-Well, I DO love my home, truly I do, I've always loved Kakariko and will always be devoted to it, but... If I am to be completely honest, I've always dreamed of getting to meet my Grand-Auntie Purah in Hateno in person... Grandma Impa and I have exchanged letters with her every few years when we can, she's always so nice, complimenting the pictures I send her and sending back a book or two with the messenger sometimes... And it's only right to meet your kin in person if you can, right? Purah is even older than Grandma Impa so I should probably try to see her soon if I can..."

Link didn't mention it, but definitely thought to himself, 'Eh, don't worry Paya, you should still have plenty of time, probably...' Instead he encouraged her, and himself, by telling her, "Well then... After I finally get the sword of legend and get Zelda back, and get a few things tied up at the castle... We'll come back for you and accompany you on a trip to Hateno, Paya, I promise. You... And, well, the child you'll probably have by then, and maybe even Impa too if she thinks she can handle the trip... We'll all go to visit Auntie Purah in Hateno together, with Zelda. All of us... K-Kinda like a family, I guess, if that's okay with you...? I got a house in Hateno, you know, but I think Zelda would feel better to have a sort of family to come home to as well, not just a home... I definitely know I would..." He concluded, his throat getting a little thick as he stared off into the glistening waters... 

Paya sputtered a little, but quickly caught her voice back from her throat as she answered, suddenly almost confident again, "I-I'd love that! That would be so amazing, Link! I want to do it too!" She suddenly went all red over that outburst, realizing just what she'd said, in her naked state, but strangely, she didn't start sputtering over it... Instead she, in a strange mix of her newfound confidence and lingering shyness, began to slowly wade closer to him in the water, and softly mused... "Then... I suppose, I should... D-Do my part... To make that wonderful future come to pass... L-Link...?"

She looked over at him then, hesitant but questioning. still shy and still worried, but not... Unsure. Not anymore. She looked finally close to Ready... 

Close to it anyways, but...

Link didn't yet move from his spot, leaning against the rim of the fountain, except to briefly beckon her closer with a single finger. "How about another hug first...?" He inquired hopefully, giving her a relaxed wink.

She blushed something fierce, but she was smiling now too... She nodded, and slowly waded closer to him. He held out his hand to her, and she reached out for it, letting him pull her in closer until they were right next to each other, right in front of each other... Then they reached out and around each other, Paya still shaking but Link arms strong and secure as he enclosed them around her, steadying her quaking form against him. She let out a small squeak, her legs instinctively squeezing shut initially as she felt his manhood brush against her lower stomach and navel, making her tummy twist in strange ways, especially combined with how her naked breasts and nipples were right up against his, and he was staring up at her with as least half as much of a blush as her. "Everything still alright, Paya...? If so... Can I maybe... Kiss you now...?"

Her face full red, she just barely managed to nod once more for him, certainly too shy to say anymore now, she simply closed her eyes and leaned in, puckering up just a little for him but super self-conscious that she was doing it too much, Link just smiled and leaned in one last time, setting his hands on her cheeks, he drew her in just a little closer, and with a little bit of his old naive spirit of wonder still in him, he puckered up just a little at first too as their lips first met...

Paya melted into a sigh nearly as soon as they came together, a barrier seemingly coming down for her when she finally felt his kiss, her mouth falling slightly open in an 'O'. Sensing the opportunity, Link hesitantly slipped his tongue out and ran it along Paya's bottom lip, silently asking permission to go further. She gasped at first, unsure, so Link waited to go further... But then, to his immense surprise and intense satisfaction, her hands on his shoulder finally grasped at him, and she turned her head into the kiss, opened her mouth a little wider, and slipped her own tongue into Link's mouth.

Link let her search a little while, a moan almost ready to release in the back of his throat at how Paya seemed to finally be getting into it... And when Paya wrapped her legs around him under the water, clutching onto his shoulders even tighter as she pressed their bodies completely together, he had to let that moan flow into her mouth, the arm around her waist boldly sneaking over her birthmarked cheek... 

Paya suddenly gasped and pulled back from the kiss again, blushing deep and panting hard, "Ah! W-Wait, Master Link... I w-want to continue, b-but... Um..."

Link grinned and then stuck out his tongue playfully, "Ah, I know. Lets get out of the water now -- Cotera doesn't need a free show on top of all the rupees I gave her!"

Diane Cook  
To:  
Diane Cook

Thu, Nov 19, 2020 at 11:20 AM

After collecting a few spare cooking ingredients along the road for a day or two, Link decided to save his feet and warped the rest of the way to the shrine just atop the hill outside of Kakariko. As soon as his presence was recognized, people all over the village started to hustle and bustle around him. He got the feeling something must have happened and went to check on Impa and Paya.

Impa was glad to hear about LInk's recent and considerable triumphs, but apparently some other problems had popped up in her village since then. This was obvious right away by the way poor Paya was cowering nearby in a corner, right next to the distinct empty spot where an incredibly important sacred orb was supposed to be sitting. Paya was quick to inform him that it had been stolen in the middle of the night while she got her rare and much needed rest. The poor girl felt so violated, knowing not just that she had been stolen from, but how close she could have come to death...

But then... The fact the neither her nor Impa WAS dead was QUITE telling...

Paya was of course beyond distraught, though Impa didn't seem to be fussing over her, Link knew the other villagers surely had given her heck for the mistake. She swore that she only took her eyes off of it for a second, and Link well and truly believed her, truly believed that she worked herself to exhaustion trying to keep that old orb safe and clean and revered her entire life, and he for one at least refused to blame her for nodding off after all her dedication, as if the Yiga spy wasn't constantly looking for that slip-up every hour of every day...

And if they were able to look out for that slip-up so constantly, and hadn't killed Paya or Impa... It was certainly someone who lived in the village... And someone who still wanted to, most likely...

Impa asked Link to stay by Paya's side through the rest of the day, to assure her and calm her. Obviously the girl was worried about a return visit, and Link was no dummy, he knew Impa had put it together herself they had a spy and needed good old Link to sniff it out... In the meantime though, he accompanied Paya up to her room, assured her that everything would be fine, that she had done her best and that he would take over from there, that everything would be alright... It took a few hours but her sniffling, crying and cowering finally lessened up, until she was able to completely put herself at right again. After all it wouldn't do to keep blubbering around someone so handsome...

Especially when he was being so sweet on her at the moment, sitting right next to her, occasionally even daring to reach over and give her back a few pats, which caused her about once an hour to scoot just the tiniest inch closer to him, until she was nearly beside him at the end of the day, when she finally mentioned, "Master Link. Thank you for staying by my side the whole day. I see now that crying and feeling scared won't help us get the heirloom back..." He hadn't said anything to pressure her of course, but he respected that she was trying to be helpful again after her own more than reasonable break-down... She then mentioned, "I checked with Dorian and Cado, but they said they didn't see anyone other than the villagers around... I'll try to remember anything I can about the night the heirloom was taken, but..."

She trailed off, not wanting to say anything accusing. Link was already thinking what she and Impa both were, of course. None of them were dummies even if they had been fooled by this spy for a while... The rest of the village might blame Paya, but the truth was all of them had been fooled too...

Link stayed around until nightfall... Then he put on his stealthiest, darkest-colored sheikah suit, covered his golden hair to hide from the light of the moon and blended in with the night. He knew exactly who his target was. The one who himself had been made a target...

Just past ten 'o' clock and he started to make his way up the cliff overlooking the village. Link followed, up past the Ta'Log Naeg shrine, up and off to the side, into the forest where most wouldn't think to wander, as it was very dense for a stretch. But after a while he watched as Dorian came up to a narrow bridge over a small creek, which led to a clearing, and in the middle of that clearing, a shrine pedastel...

He wasn't alone, that was quickly made obvious when he demanded someone to show themselves, and Link knew that he wasn't talking about him, because of course he knew he was better than that to have been spotted by this simp of a spy...

Some big guy showed up and Yadda Yadda Dorian started having some special little 'Old Times Sake' moment with the dude, quickly making it obvious that he was in fact a former Yiga himself, and even if he didn't want to be anymore, clearly they were still able to use him, especially with his little family trying to live peacefully in Kakariko. Well that wouldn't do for Link, so he decided to step forward.

The big doofus of a Yiga finally noticed him when he made his presence obvious, and they two of them duked it out. But as they say, bigger they are, harder they fall, and Link sent his banana-loving ass tipping into the nearby creek to drown, partially on the water and partially on his own blood. Then Link turned to Dorian, wondering what to do with him... 

He quickly confessed, of course, told Link his sob story, and admittedy it was pretty sad... Though Link mostly felt bad for his wife and the children more than Dorian. Then he asked him to keep things between them about this whole incident, even though there had been a plot to kill both Impa and Paya. Haha. Yeah, no. Link of course 'promised' he would and then headed straight back to Impa's...

Paya had gone to sleep by then, it was very late, but Impa was waiting for him to report his findings. He of course told her everything and she nodded. He knew she had no plans to out Dorian unless he messed up again, for the sake of his children at least, but he wasn't about to not let her know to look out for another mess up after one that huge... She thanked Link and he nodded, and found a pillow to lay his head on for the rest of what was left of the night. 

In the early morning, strangely, Link woke up to a completely different kind of scene and mood. He trained himself long ago to wake with the slightest movement of course, so he noticed when a couple of elder males came in, and together with a silent nod from Impa, they traveled up to Paya's room to talk with her. Of course though, they didn't 'talk' aloud, they knew Link's sensitive ears would pick up even a whisper from another floor level. No, they instead used hand signals or possibly even a magical telepathy to make sure he couldn't know what had been said, before quickly leaving just a few moments later. Very strange, very curious...

Even more strange and curious was that when he allowed himself to fully awaken about an hour later, at the proper time of morning instead of the barest crack of dawn it was when the elders visited, he found all the people of Kakariko about the village preparing for what seemed to be at least a moderate celebration. The oldest, meanest rooster was being beheaded to be stewed in a pot, carrots and pumpkins and apples were being harvested for the stew and for cakes and pies. In the meantime Link was served some eggs and watch the going-ons with a slight sense of unease. Of course he liked a good celebration just like anyone else, but this was weird, especially for sheikah... Usually after such an embarrassing mishap as what happened last night, people like these would lie low and not speak of it. Were they perhaps instead using this celebration as a distraction, as another way of not speaking about it? After all nobody wanted to be the party pooper who brings up something awkward when everyone else is trying to have fun...

Well, he figured he should just go along with it and stay and rest and enjoy the free food for just one more day. Why not? No point letting all that food they were cooking go to waste, and maybe he might learn a little more about whatever was really going on...

Of course his first course of action was to try to find Impa by herself and sneakily just ask her what was going on, but her answer was vague. "Hmm? Oh we just had a few extra things that needed to be harvested anyways, and since we had our most esteemed guest in town, and since you just conquered all of the Divine Beasts and will soon make your rescue attempt of the Princess once obtaining the sword of legend, the elders decided now was a good time to have a small celebration to acknowledge your efforts, and to ask the goddesses to bless you with a safe conclusion to your journey. You already trouble yourself with enough Link, so please don't worry... The Sheikah tribe have always been loyal to the Royal Family first, but... In order to bring the last of them back, you are the one we must support. Please allow us all to do our best to do so..."

Huh...? That was weird too... Impa's words seemed flippant at first, but by the end she seemed more purposeful... Well, in any case, even though Link could tell something was kind of up around him, he still trusted most of these people more than not, so he settled down by the nearby goddess pond, tranquilly playing with passing koi fish that suckled on his fingertips while all the pretty ladies around him prepared things that smelled sweet and delicious. 

He noticed though, after a few hours had passed, that Paya hadn't come out of the house today... That wasn't completely alarming, she was usually kind of a shut-in, obviously, since it was her job to watch that orb so carefully, but of course once in a while Impa watched the orb herself and let Paya fetch some groceries and get at least a little of that much needed sunlight, and now since the orb was finally out of her hands for good, and since they were having a party, Link assumed that meant she would be allowed to join... Perhaps Paya was still just too shy and embarrassed though... He supposed after being a shut in for that long it would be hard to go out and celebrate the next day... 

But then again... What were those old guys talking to her and Impa about early that morning before everything started? It might seem like the obvious answer was that Paya was being excluded from the celebration for her failure to keep the orb from being stolen, but Link didn't think that was it. After all one of the other guards was the one that stole it, Impa surely had told at least the other two elders about that, so Paya couldn't be completely blamed, and since Dorian himself was waiting for the feast out in the open with his children, surely Paya wasn't being punished...?

His worries finally lessened up another hour later when, just before the hours of twilight set a blanket of colors and shade over the land and sky, Paya finally emerged from her home, adorned in a very intricate and flowy dress. It was something definitely different than her usual short shrine-maiden dress used for cleaning. This was definitely a ceremonial dress. Her face was also painted, not just with the usual symbols on her forehead, but with lipstick and eyeshadow and blush too, and several very valuable and very old gemstone hairpins had been fastened into her locks, along with a precious diamond circlet around the crown of her head.

She looked very nice... But... Almost just a -tad- overdressed actually, especially for her, and especially considering none of the other women were quite that dressed up actually, and why were some of the women glaring at her like tha--Wait. Wait wait wait. Wwwaaaaaaaiiiitt a MINUTE, STASIS THE WORLD, WHAT WAS GOING ON RIGHT NOW--??

Everyone else be damned, Link had to made sure this wasn't quite what it looked like -- He found a quick moment when Paya was standing alone and pulled her behind an apple tree, whispering in a slight panic, but trying his best to keep cool, "Um. Paya? This isn't what it looks like, right? Because it looks an awful lot like you're about to get married or something, but I can't for the life of me figure out WHO you're supposed to be getting married to here...?" Hopefully that was direct enough without seeming accusing... Link understood there was a lot of pressure on her and didn't want her to think he was mad at her personally for this, whatever this was, but he was a little disappointed that she would still just go through with it without complaint, at least if he was being dragged into it in some way too...?

But she didn't seem worried about that at least, and to ease his worries, she quickly informed him, "I AM getting married... But you needn't worry. Of course I am not worthy to marry you, Link... But now that you have tamed the fourth and final Divine Beast, I am being asked to fulfill a sacred ceremony -- One that my own mother and grandmother Impa waited many years for the chance to fulfill. They never got to, but now that the time has come, I am the fortunate shrine maiden being asked to complete this rare and honored role... Link... You have done so much already... Of course we would not demand any more commitments from you. All that will be asked of you during this ceremony is that your sword be temporarily borrowed. It is... T-To your sword only, that I am being asked to commit myself to... I must do this... Walking away simply isn't an option..."

That was... A little less worrisome, he supposed? At least for him. But Paya didn't seem like she was any less worried... Link had a feeling there was more to this than he knew, but for the time being, he couldn't exactly stop this. This was age-old tradition and that was what Paya had been prepared for her whole life. It wasn't the least bit fair to her, but Link was also smart enough to know that when it came to traditions, people were far less likely to care about what was 'fair', and complaining about it would just shame Paya, perhaps even get her in trouble. 

In fact, though he'd like to give the residents of Kakariko more credit than the Yiga at least, Link knew well that the consequences of a Sheikah failing in the old days wasn't that much different than how a Yiga that failed was treated... Paya might actually be secretly banished or even secretly killed (highly unlikely but Link wasn't going to take the chance...) once he left... Most likely she would 'simply' be ostracised the rest of her life, probably forced to live on the outskirts of the village, shunned and rejected as a failure...

The only thing Paya could really do to keep her life normal was to do what they said... It wasn't fair to her but to Link's frustration... It seemed this just wasn't something he could so easily save her from... He couldn't just slaughter the people demanding this of her, they were otherwise good people that she loved. She had been trained to believe that fulfilling this would be Paya's honor. But Link knew... He could see it in her shy eyes, looking away, she had her doubts deep down too, and she knew at least a bit more than she was telling him...

He couldn't help but feel cautious and even a little jealous handing his sword over to Paya's careful bosom, but it was only gentlemanly. If that sword could only bring her normality when for him it was destined to always give him greatness and glory, he could at least let her borrow it for just a few minutes...

She thanked him with as deep a bow as she could manage while holding his sword as carefully as she could, and returned to Impa, who was waiting nearby. It seemed as soon as he had given that sword to her, the ceremony had officially begun. The others crowded around the outskirts of the goddess pond while Paya very carefully stepped up to the goddess statue on the narrow little earth bridge leading up to it, and sank the blade of the sword in front of the holy little goddess statue, before bowing down low with the eye on her forehead to the ground.

Impa quickly hissed at her suddenly, "Paya! Your SLEEVES..." 

They had been dipping into the water at her sides. Paya gasped and quickly pulled them out of the water, though there wasn't much room to work with, then bowed back down again. 

Paya then rose up, looking at the sword and the statue in reverence. For a few seconds, to Link's amazement, it seemed like a ghostly outline of Princess Zelda's spirit had appeared before Paya. It didn't seem like any of the other villagers could see it, they weren't reacting to it...? But Paya looked up at the spirit, the only one with the wide eyes Link also had seeing her, and the spectre of the princess proceeded to bend down and kiss Paya on the forehead, right in the middle of her third eye... 

The spirit vanished as quickly as she had come, but Link got the distinct feeling that Paya... Had gotten her blessing...?

The sight of it made his heart skip a beat for a moment, but as soon as Paya returned from the goddess pond, the villagers just quickly went back to the usual activities and festivities, with no indication whatsoever that they had seen anything but Paya's bow. That alone seemed to appease them, and so the benches and tables were filled with people and food. They enjoyed the bounty slowly, everyone having a sort of "GIving Thanks" ritual during the meal towards Link where each person in the village took a turn telling him what they were grateful for having in their lives because of his hard work and bravery, how they pledged to continue helping him protect Hyrule and the royal family, however small it currently was. 

It was flattering and all a bit much, and made it kind of hard to actually enjoy the food, but finally after everyone was done he was allowed to pick through the now cold but still tasty offerings, wondering what all that was about... He supposed it was their way of fortifying not just his body with this food, but his spirit with their thanks and encouragement. Well, their words -were- very nice and heartfelt, which he was sure was difficult for some of their stiffer members, and the food was good as always. He was certainly more than fortified already by all this, ready to get back to what he had to do--

Except... Several members of the village suddenly took out old, traditional instruments and began to play them. Some other members began to stiffly dance with each other, slow and purposeful displays instead of truly joyful leaps of merriment. Paya was kneeling before the shrine, watching them all. Impa suddenly pulled Link off to the side behind a tree herself, the others seemingly paying her no mind as she did so, all at least except for Paya, who glanced just briefly towards them with a small amount of worry. 

Link quirked a brow down at the woman who was now his elder, leaning against the tree, "Impa...?"

She simply 'got down to business', as had always been her style, "Link... We'll be requesting that you stay with us one more night before you go out on your attempt to find the sword of legend and defeat Calamity Ganon... We'll be... Humbly requesting that you stay one more additional night with Paya tonight..."

Link steeled a look at her, a look that demanded truth, and no lies. "Impa, I had just convinced myself that this wasn't what it looked like at first... But now I'm starting to think it is. You tell me then..."

Impa was quick to defend herself and the village's ways, but not to deny anything, really. "Come now, Link. You're a champion... One would be a fool to try to force you to do something you didn't want to... Everyone in this village wants the same thing, has the same goal... To assist you as best we can. No one would do anything to jeopardize that. We all simply... Want to offer you whatever help we can... That's all anyone can do, is simply offer to help, however they best can..." She ended rather cryptically, in a way that supposedly suggested she had fully answered him even though he still didn't get it at all... In any case, she bowed after that and walked away, clearly not about to answer anything else. 

Night fell over the village, and people started going back into their homes at last. But Link noticed very pointedly that Impa did not return to her home, no, she carefully sneaked away into the inn when she was sure he hadn't been looking anymore, leaving only Link and Paya to stay at the shrine tonight... This was getting too obvious... But now that it WAS this obvious, Link knew he couldn't just shame or embarass Paya by leaving her alone... They were both being expected to play a role here tonight, but... Link was NOT just gonna read his lines, that was for sure...

By the time the moon was high overhead, not a single villager was left out and about, except for the guards at the entrances of the village of course, but the guards that usually stayed outside of Impa's home had been decidedly dismissed for the night... 

Link had seen Paya sneak away into her home just before the party had started to end, and just before that had happened, Link had seen Impa insist on giving the girl a cup of the spiced juices to take with her... Link had the feeling that it would take more than 'liquid courage' to help someone like Paya do something like this, though...

When he opened the door to the shrine, she was sitting there in the middle of the room, staring at the cup she'd been given. When he suddenly came in, she gasped at the sight of him, panicked, and quickly tried to take a big gulp. She managed to get it down her throat, but then she started to cough so harshly afterwards that she had to put the rest of the cup back down before she spilled it...

Link rubbed the back of his neck, trying to smile and alleviate some of the awkwardness. "Don't force yourself to try to drink the rest if you can't... It won't make you any braver, that's more or less just a myth. It will only make you sick."

He sat down then, not far from her, casually crossing his knees on a nearby pillow, and resting his face in his hands while his elbows rested on his knees. Link didn't truly feel as casual as he looked at the moment, but he certainly wasn't nervous either. Impa was telling the truth that no one here would force something on him, but... How were they expecting someone like Paya to even SUGGEST it...?

She certainly didn't look very confident at the moment. This was just getting more and more awkward. Link of course was never going to do it with a woman that wasn't 100% enthusiastic about him, and though Paya pretty clearly seemed to have some sort of feelings or attraction to Link, that was a far cry from asking her to do this now...

Link was so deep in thought wondering what Paya was finally going to say and how to respond, that he was almost caught off guard when she finally did hesitantly raise her voice. "U-Um... M-Master Link... I-I was told... Th-That I sh-should offer you a b-back rub tonight... In order that you m-might be more rested... B-Before the fight with G-Ganon..."

He glanced over at her... Baby steps. Of course Paya would have to start with baby steps. But Link so wasn't used to that approach... When people wanted something from him, they usually just outright asked him. If it wasn't just as easy for them to give him something, he didn't want it. He could only be so blunt with Paya though. He didn't want to shame her or turn her into a crying mess... "Well... I'm not sure I like that you were TOLD to do it, but... I would certainly appreciate having my back worked on a bit before I go into battle, if it's okay with you. I will ignore any pain to rescue Zelda, but admittedly back pain is one of the hardest kinds to ignore..."

He still felt a little awkward about it but he also felt that accepting at least this was only polite, and it gave them the chance to be close enough to really speak on a personal level. The massage itself only did so much for Link, as Paya's slender and uncertain hands could only dig so deep into his hardened muscles, no offense to her but Gerudo women were the best at that, but just the contact itself was reassuring to him. After a short while though, even Paya's light touches started to become shaky and uncertain, and finally Link had to just come out and say what was on his mind. "Paya... Listen. I know they asked you to do more than a massage for me tonight... But I don't want anything that's not truly given enthusiastically, especially not something like that. Please don't be offended, you're one of the most beautiful girls I've ever met, but..."

Paya very suddenly took her hands back, rushed to scurry around to the front of him, and did a deep bow, with her forehead to the immaculately clean floors. Words suddenly rushed from her mouth like the winds blowing from an incoming storm, "M-M-MASTER LINK--! P-PLEASE... P-P-Please, just let me explain myself... Let me explain EVERYTHING... I promise, no, I s-swear I'll be c-completely honest with you..."

He slowly nodded... He knew this was a place of secrecy and hiding, but he truly believed that if anyone would be completely honest with him here and now, it was her... "Alright, Paya... Please go ahead."

She kept her forehead to the floor, too shy to lift her eyes while she was saying what she was about to, "I know... What you surely m-must think of this tradition... They speak of ancestors of mine who successfully posed as simple farmgirls or barmaids, who would bed the hero and then raise the child in a secret, secure place... They spoke of these women like they were heroes in their own way, but... I always just thought they were CREEPY! I think this whole tradition is CREEPY! It's outdated, and intrusive, and makes so many assumptions about you... I've already tried to speak to the elders about my concerns before, but... They have always been very insistant upon the importance of the ritual, in the past and now... And when I try to speak of my worries... If I do not word things very, very carefully, they will often g-get angry, or ashamed of me... They believe it to not just be the easiest task, but the one that will bring the most honor. Grandmother and mother waited all their lives for the chance to fulfill it. It was just my luck that I was born at such a 'lucky and auspicious' time... T-To fail this task would bring great shame, but... To not even try? I would be banished for such impudence... P-Please Master Link... I already know I will fail. I wouldn't insult you or make you uncomfortable by even trying, and I wouldn't dare to make assumptions about you. I would just be most grateful... If you would tell the elders that I at least tried, that I at l-least offered... B-By all means... If there was anything you wanted from me, y-you could have it!" She burst out, then quickly covered her mouth with both hands, burning red. "B-But I know... I-I have nothing I could offer that you would want..."

Easy? Really? Of course a bunch of old men would go along with that but he was a little surprised with Impa... She was always pretty sweet and gentle with Paya, more than less even trying to be considerate of her between the teasing, but when it came right down to it, not only had Impa herself been prepared to fulfill this role for years (and no Link was NOT gonna think too hard about that...) so had her own daughter... If she was willing to ask her own daughter to do this too, then of course she had the same expectation of Paya. But was nobody actually considering what it would be like to have actually REALLY do this from Paya's position...? Clearly not. This was getting depressing, really, but Link was determined to do and ask whatever he had to to help this poor girl, somehow... So he started by getting more information. "Paya... Forgive me if any of this sounds crude, but I'm just trying to understand things better and see what I can do to help most in this situation... If this is something you truly have no desire to do at all, you would have run away, right? But you're scared of banishment... It is only because you're scared of being left alone? If that was the case I would be happy to accompany you to another village, like Hateno or maybe Gerudo Town...? It would be a big change, but you could leave all the traditions and expectations behind..."

He could see from the lingering sadness in her eyes that it wouldn't work before she even answered, "Even if I wanted to go, that would only make things worse, I'm afraid... Abandoning my post, running away... It would be seen as even more impudent than a simple refusal or inability. But besides that... Kakariko, and her people... Regardless of this, I will always be loyal to them, and I wish to stay living here... A-And... I-It's not -exactly- that I don't want to--I MEAN, th-that is to say, of course, that surely -any-girl would want to, y-you know! B-Because y-you're just... SO VALIANT! AND HANDSOME!!" She finally forced herself to blurt out, looking like she'd run a marathon after doing so... "S-S-SO! I-IT DOESN'T MAKE SENSE THEN! Th-That is, the ritual! The whole reason for it... Is t-to ensure a p-progeny from the hero if he is of age before the final battle, as a f-failsafe, because obviously if the hero ever died as a child another hero was still chosen, but also... When I saw you for the first time, those years ago... I still promised to uphold my vows of ch-chastity of course, b-but... F-Forgive me if this is in fact untrue, o-or just not my place to say, b-but... I couldn't help but think to myself, that surely I wouldn't be truly needed... That s-surely... A m-man as h-handsome as you would... P-Probably have at least a few much more beautiful women make you a... S-Similar offer..."

By then she had worked herself up into another deep blush, and Link fanned her from a short distance to cool and calm her own, mentioning as he did so, "Well, thank YOU, at least, Paya, for that much deserved show of confidence... Maybe some past heroes weren't able to muster the confidence or the time to land a date but I assure you that's not me... Not to, erm, brag, but well... Yeah, I've maybe been with a few... Y-Yeah..." He ended that a little awkwardly and a LOT ambiguously, but thankfully Paya didn't seem to either notice or want to pry much... "Though I wouldn't say any one person was more beautiful than the other... But I meant it when I said you're one of the most beautiful I've met, too, Paya. Regardless of if I wanted to go that far, I still think you are a beautiful woman, so please don't doubt yourself at least..."

She shook her head, although she was trying to agree with him. Her eyes started to look a little strangely faraway... "Th-Thank you Master Link... It is said... That long ago, the Sheikah made their hair as white as paper, as a symbol to the royal family that we were pure enough to be in their presence, and that we could be trusted, like human parchment or living books, to save knowledge in times where it might elsewise have been destroyed and lost to the ages... And so I, as an extension of that purpose, but devoted to the sword of legend and whatever hand that wields it, have always been told that I... That I am to be l-like... Like a canvas for the hero... That if I c-could... Secure your blessings... And use ancient magic to secure a male progeny in your likeness... The elders said that if I succeeded, I would no longer be a blank canvas, but a masterpiece, a work of art created and signed by the hero himself, a work to be admired for generations... And, j-just to be completely honest with you M-Master Link... They promised me a physical reward if I were to do this, b-but I promise, that's not the real reason I want to do this! I mean... B-Besides that fact that you ARE so handsome...! Besides that... I want my village to be proud of me, I want to do what they've asked of me... I just want things to be as peaceful as possible. And I've never been a fighter at all... I've always been happiest doing my duty, and creating things that people need anyways, so why not do what, well, I probably would have done anyways...? I just... I just want my role to finally be fulfilled! I don't want to be some daring rebel, I just want do this thing that everyone wants of me so much so I can just be free to be myself and be BY myself afterwards! Honest, Master Link, I promise I'd be just as fine living in the little shack at the end of the village as I would be in the big house they say they plan to build me overlooking the whole village, even over Impa's -- But I don't NEED that! All I've really been wanting... Is just a place to finally be by myself... With no one constantly... ALWAYS... Watching me..."

Aaah... Now everything was starting to make sense to him... And besides it making a lot of sense for Paya... Link was relating pretty hard to the young woman now, too... Like Paya said, she was no fighter, but other than that, she actually really understood the kind of mental stress he'd always been under his whole life. He suddenly felt a striking sort of kinship with her... And besides that... He just plain felt sorry for her. A blank canvas... Really? Was that what Impa and her daughter had been told all along too... Was Impa now sitting there believing herself to be a forever blank canvas, destined to never be considered art... Maybe that was why she was okay with it... She believed Paya to be getting a rare chance that slipped past her and many others... Maybe that was too poetic for a hero, but it didn't sit well with Link... Not for Impa, or Paya, or any other woman who had been made to believe such soul-crushing things... And all to support the Royal Family, the same one that kept Zelda so trapped and unhappy for so long... Link had been thinking for a while that maybe not everything the royal family and their armies did was justified in history, but this was really putting the icing on that cake...

He chuckled a bit dryly to himself there, "Well then... Obviously at the very least they know it's not truly such an easy task, if they're willing to offer you such a grand reward for it..."

Paya's face suddenly scrunched up, and a small snort of laughter escaped her too. Blushing terribly after, she couldn't help but shyly admit, "I... I've always wanted to say something like that... I've always thought it, but I'd never have the nerve to really say it to them... I've always admired how you can just speak your mind the way you do..."

Link's eyes drifted off for a moment, looking right through the old tapestry as he remembered days long past. "...I actually... Wasn't really always like this though, you know... Believe it or not I used to be a lot more like you, Paya. I almost never spoke. I felt almost shy to sometimes. Like surely no one wanted to hear what I had to say, unless it was relevant to a mission... It's only since I woke up here, and now... That I've really started to talk a lot again, like I did back when I was a kid. I remember running my mouth for hours to my mother and sister about dreams I had when I was a kid, but after dad put me in training... Well, daydreaming CAN get you killed, it's not a good habit to indulge in TOO much, but... I guess I missed that kid I used to be almost as much as I miss the family I used to have back then... Maybe that's why I've been running my mouth and acting more like a dumb kid ever since I woke up here, besides the fact that I didn't -remember- being a stiff, uptight knight at first... Maybe it's because... It's the only way to ever be anywhere close to those memories again..." 

He looked over towards Paya again, but his eyes were still more on the white of her skirt than her. That dress... It almost kind of reminded him of Zelda's, the last time he'd seen her... "I've asked nearly every elder I've met if they've heard of my sister, but... None of them have... My mother left this world when I was younger. My father... I confirmed in Hateno that he fell trying to aid me at the fated battle for Hyrule Castle, all those years ago... I just wish I knew what happened to my sister... No one in Hateno knows what happened to her... That hurts more than anything, besides the fact that I failed Zelda the first time... But I failed her being that stiff, stubborn knight I tried to force myself to be, so... What more have I got to lose just trying to be myself this time...?" He shrugged at that. "I don't know... Maybe that's just a dumb excuse... I'll probably have to go back to keeping my mouth shut more often, once I finally save Zelda... Wouldn't want to embarrass her or put her in danger, after all..."

To his surprise though, Paya, so normally shy and difficult to get to say anything, let alone her real feelings, suddenly burst out at him, "M-Master Link! Forgive me, but I think you're wrong! I don't think Princess Zelda would want that at all... She waited so long to see you again... Don't you think she deserves to finally meet the real you? And... I don't think you failed her trying to be a stiff, stubborn knight... I-I still don't think you failed her at all, b-but... Maybe... You feel that way, because... You almost gave up your life for her, but if she never really knew you... It just seems like that would have been a waste... You faced all those terrifying enemies, but... I guess the heart of a woman is what really makes men nervous..."

She suddenly seemed to realize all that she had just said, and erupted into a shameful blush, hiding her face in her hands, "AH--! I'm so sorry, I spoke too much, I--!"

"You're right..." Link admitted then, smiling back up at her despite how much the truth hurt his heart. The stoic, stubborn knight he used to be would have denied it right away, would never admit to this, but... "You're absolutely right, Paya... I was never scared of the monsters. I was never really even scared of dying. I was scared of the princess herself. I was scared of Zelda... I was scared I would fail her, I was scared I would disappoint her... She already had so much pressure on her own shoulders, and I know my own successes made her feel like a failure... I'm sure I didn't make it easier on her, being such a nervous wreck despite my supposed success... I still don't know if she'd LIKE the real me, but... After everything she went through and sacrificed, you're right that she at least DESERVED to know the real me... Besides, who knows... Maybe knowing what a dumbass I really was deep down would have made her feel less self-conscious..."

Paya's hands suddenly moved to cover her mouth. She wasn't offended by his language though, she was snorting and failing at containing a laugh behind her hand. People never said such words around her before, but it was... Thrilling! She couldn't help but dare to respond truthfully, since she was sure Link wouldn't mind her real honesty by now, "You know, I... I think you're right!" 

Link laughed outright at that, encouraging Paya to laugh more openly at her own joke too. The two of them were all smiles for several seconds, forgetting if just for an instant all the worries and expectations around them...

But then Paya blushed and looked away, "You're actually very clever... You just need to be more confident. I know I shouldn't say that to anyone myself, considering how little confidence I have myself, but..."

Feeling brave enough to tell her the truth now too, Link argued gently back at that, "Well, you have so little confidence because no one here ever LET you be confident! Calling you a blank canvas, telling you that you needed someone else to paint over your own life and make you a masterpiece -- You already are one! You'd have plenty of confidence if people had just told you that instead..."

She blushed bright red, but kept silent to herself, seemingly not wanting to shame any of her peers or family even if she did agree... To an extent. He could see in her uncertain eyes that she still didn't see herself as art of any kind... He knew he had to do SOMETHING to erase that belief, but what...

Suddenly it came to him. "Paya? Do you remember telling me about the Great Fairy Fountain where Cotera resides? You've been there yourself, right?" She told him about it before, and it wasn't that far at all, so he assumed--

"Oh... Not really...?" WHAT? "I mean... I've been escorted to the shrine overlooking the village before, for a sacred rite and to pray for Cotera, but we never actually ventured deep enough into the forest to find Cotera's spring..."

Link quickly insisted, "But--It's not even that far? That forest isn't THAT big? You--You should totally come with me to go see it! Tonight!" 

Paya's eyes went big, shocked at the sudden suggestion, "Eh--?! G-Go with you, i-into the forest--?"

Link put his hands on his hips, looking insistent, "Well, how can you say you've ever really prayed for Cotera if you never visited her directly? I bet she couldn't even hear you that far away..." He sighed a little dramatically there. 

Paya covered her mouth in embarrassment, but whispered through the fingers nonetheless, "Ah... Y-You're probably right, poor Cotera... B-But... I've never been all the way outside of the village before... E-Especially alone at night, in the forest, with a MAN--!" She suddenly 'eeped' and quieted herself before she said anything too loud. "I-I mean... I know that it's my d-duty, that you're literally the only m-man in the world my tribe would be be okay with m-me visiting like that... B-But, it's not them I know I should consider first, at least, in my humble opinion... My tribe considers practical matters first, what one can see with one's own eye, not those of the heart, but... It's just, I always thought to myself... W-Well, w-what about the p-princess...? The rumors always claimed that y-you, and the p-princess... Well, that you had a special relationship, n-not just that of princess and knight... A-And, if that's the case, I wouldn't want to come between you two... I know there were other girls too, but they can come and go wherever they please. But m-me...? It's my duty to stay here in Kakariko, and my duty to serve the royal blood... So if doing such a thing would upset the princess, I of course wouldn't want to do anything to hurt her..." She left off there, but Link understood -- Pissing off a princess would already be a dumb idea in general but especially if people always knew where to find you...

But Link quickly assured her, "Princess Zelda isn't like that... She never was... Actually, you two are a lot alike, because well, Zelda and IMPA were a lot alike back then, of course. You know, if I had my memory back when I first met you I would have mistaken you for Impa, you look so much alike. Impa was a little more of a go-getter but she was just as cautious as you. Well, almost... You're even more cautious than Impa was, but of course that's completely understandable... In any case, Zelda always had too many troubles to worry about such things for herself, let alone to have the time to worry about others stealing someone from her. Princess Mipha herself, who was known to be extra shy like you Paya, once very nearly told Princess Zelda about her feelings for me, one time. If we hadn't been attacked at just the wrong time, I'm sure she would have. If someone as shy and reserved as Mipha felt comfortable enough to almost tell Zelda what we shared, I have no doubt that Zelda was never the jealous type. If she was, Mipha would have surely never even uttered it... And besides that... Zelda would understand what you're going through better than most would, too. She was always tied to tradition, held to expectations. Like every queen before her she was expected to someday marry and bear a daughter for the kingdom too, in addition to all the hardships they already asked her to endure... I think the two of you will have nothing but things in common when you finally get to meet each other... Though to be honest... I think Zelda already gave you her blessing today, in fact... Paya, at the goddess statue's spring, did you--?" He suddenly couldn't resist asking her anymore...

She blurted out, "AH! Y-You saw her too?! I was so sure I must have been daydreaming too much again, nobody else seemed to see her...?"

He shook his head at that... Seemed to be reassuring himself now with his next words, not just her... "I think that was her way of giving you her blessing, telling you it was alright... The truth is... Regardless of who I love, or who Zelda might love... We are bound to each other not just by the roles of knight and princess... We are bound by our souls..." He was surprisingly kind of just realizing this fully himself, despite knowing it, looking into the third eye on Paya's forehead he suddenly fully felt it, the confidence that he could get her back, and WHY, damn it -- She was HIS and he was HERS, that blasted boar had tried so many times to break that, and maybe in some realities he had, but not in THIS one, and he swore he would see to it, if by the skin of his teeth and on determination alone, they WOULD be there to face the future together again. One with a clear sky, one where malice was going extinct and silent princesses were thriving... "We truly are.... Soulmates. We'll always find a way to be together again, no matter what... So of course over all those years we'll make other friends, even have whole armies or kingdoms of them after enough years have gone by... Basically? Nah, neither of us are the jealous types. But... Does it bother YOU, Paya? Be honest. Would you rather be with someone as chaste as you, does my experience bother you? I'll be completely honest with you first -- I've been with a virgin like you before," It wasn't assuming, it was OBVIOUS. "But my other lovers were more experienced too... Does that bother you?"

Paya blushed deeply at his utter candidness, but managed to shake her head 'no', despite cleverly understanding why Link was being so ambiguous about the gender of his lovers... "I-It's actually... Sort of... A relief! B-Both that I can rely on y-your experience, and w-well... I'm glad I d-don't have to worry about d-disappointing you on your f-first t-time!"

Link snorted and outright rolled his eyes at that, sighing as he remembered fondly, "I was so nervous my first time, Princess Mipha had me a wreck in her hands in no time... Trust me, a girl like you could never disappoint me, now or then. Anyways... I also just figured, if you wanted to go through this with me, well... The Great Fairy Fountain just sounded like a much more romantic spot than, well... Your grandmother's house..."

Paya's face suddenly turned a different kind of mortified, and she quickly agreed, "OH! O-Of course, Master Link, it's just, well, I don't expect anyone to be out tonight that might see us, b-but then they don't expect me to be out either, s-so--?"

Link nudged her gently his his elbow to hers, and flashed her a rare cocky smile. "Hey. I'm not just anybody, remember? I know a special secret Hero way to get out outta town without anyone being the wiser. You up for it, Paya~?"

What girl wouldn't be, seeing a face like that looking at them...? "Haah.... O-Okay, Master Link, I... I trust you..." She slowly forced herself to reply, crouching a bit, almost trying to seem smaller even though she was much taller than him. Like most women and people in general were, good thing he was so into that...

Not letting her make herself too much smaller, he got in front of her, and motioned over his shoulder to his back. "Get on. Don't worry, you won't be too heavy. As long as you can keep your hold on me and keep my hands free I can pull it off -- You can do that, right?"

His vague words made her worry a little, but she still trusted him like she said, of course she trusted him, still alive after all this time and all he'd done... He was going to get Zelda back, and if he could do that, then she could surely do this... "Yes, Master Link. I'm strong enough to carry myself, you can trust me too..."

He grinned back at her, noticing but not mentioning that she hadn't stuttered at all through that last sentence. He trusted her too... So as soon as she wrapped her arms and legs around his torso, blushing but holding on as tight as she could, Link stiffly walked to the front door. As soon as he was outside, he used Revali's Gale with the two of them together, the first time he'd ever done that admittedly but thankfully Revali seemed to put just a little oomph in it than usual and got the two of them safely to the shrine's hill without dilemma. 

Paya was panting hard but otherwise completely unharmed by the experience. Though her hair was already a bit mussy and fussy now... Link smirked, bowing to the shrine as they passed as an excuse to flip his own always messy hair to make it messier, so she wouldn't feel quite as embarrassed while she tried to fix her own locks to at least slightly resemble her previous fanciness. 

"Hehe, sorry, but yanno I prefer the 'natural' look anyways?" Link tried to offer, then slyly but also shyly suggested, "Also, Paya, I was thinking... When we get to the spring, I'm all too certain Cotera would be more than fine with us taking a dip in her fountain's waters after offering her a blessing and a tribute. Of course I'm sure they already bathed you, I was just thinking though, that it might be fun to go for a swim together first, you know, to get used to seeing each other first before we decide if we want to touch after all? And I of course would completely understand if you wanted to back out at any time..."

Paya's steps slowed a little on the upward slope, but she kept going. Though Link could also see her slow steps were from her legs starting to shake... "Ah... Of course Master Link... I'm... Completely fine with your wishes..." She said, slowly, but still managing not to stutter. "I just hope Cotera... Is really okay... W-With..." 

She stumbled a little with her words there, so Link took over more confidently, as they started heading into the forest, "Ah, trust me, Cotera will be MORE than fine with it. I'll offer the tribute, don't worry about that, but she'll be happy just to see us. The Great Fairies are all kind of like Lil Old Ladies, except, yanno, not little at all and also they look young and super beautiful and mystical and whatnot? But otherwise they're similar in that they're just lonely and really want to be visited. They like a little present and if you bring one they'll likely gift you something good in return. Just all around pretty, pleasant gals, so I see no reason they wouldn't like you too~"

Paya was just starting to worry that hopefully Link didn't see her as a 'lil old lady', but he continued, "I really like talking to those old gals, and the old men too it's just women are more cautious and more likely to live longer, and bless them for it, they're like Sheikah in miniature, as far as preserving history, you know. The Sheikah might remember the big stuff but the little stuff can add up to be pretty important too... I've learned and remembered more thanks to them than anyone else. I could sit and listen to them all day if I didn't have to keep going, but if not for them I would have been completely lost in the first place!" Well... At least if he DID see her that way, he still liked and appreciated her, she mused to herself...

Just like Link had said, it didn't take them long at all to find the fountain, and Paya almost sucked in a gasp at the sight of its beauty, but quickly ducked down and covered her mouth as she was used to when she saw the little glowing fairies, instinctively guessing correctly that Link would want to sneak up on them as he was now doing.

Catching the first one that came near, he let the others go free and simply enjoyed a 'free' healing, to make sure there wasn't any cuts or bruises he'd forgotten about in the last few weeks. There was usually a few. Then he turned to Paya and beckoned her nearer with a bouquet of flowers in the other hand that he had secretly gathered along the way too. Mostly blue nightshades, but with a single rare Silent Princess in the middle. "Here, Paya... And just so you know, this fountain, and the flowers in this bouquet...? It's how I see you Paya... As a masterpiece, perfect as is, but always even better with company..."

She was stunned into silence for a moment, barely finding the strength to lift her shaking hands and take the bouquet from him. "Ah... A Silent Princess...? Are you sure...? Th-They're so rare..."

Link nodded, "They are, but you know, they're still growing far more plentifully than they did in my day... Ugh, that made me sound old, but--I'm certain the world can spare just one for a woman as rare and unique as you..."

Paya burned bright red and looked away, "Th-Thank you Master Link, I'll press them later and cherish them forever! For now I'll just set it aside..." She let him know placing the bundle nearby a tree and some bright green stamella mushrooms. 

Then the two of them stepped forward together on the mushroom-pads, up to the lip of the spring, where Cotera quicky and eagerly sprang forth, to Paya's utter amazement at all the glittering scales and gleaming jewels. "OHOOOO~! Link, sweetie, you have a guest today~! A lovely MAIDEN~!?"

Link quickly interjected to explain for Paya before she started to stammer again, "Indeed, Cotera! A very special guest! Paya here is the shrine maiden of Kakariko. Unfortunately they were unable to visit you all the way here because they had to protect the key to the nearby shrine from Yiga soldiers while I was away for a hundred years... Sooo partially my fault, sorry, BUT, now that I finally solved that little problem with the Yiga, I figured I'd bring Paya so she could finally meet you in person. Also, I brought you a little extra shiny tribute today for being such a big help the last time I came by~?"

Cotera batted her eyes at him for that. "Oooh, indeed? How thoughtful Link dear, yes I -did- hear through the waters deep below that my sisters were rather greedy and asked you for really big tributes, but you still gave it to them! How generous you were Linky~~"

Aha~ Well, that was a hint he couldn't ignore! So he quickly pulled out his wallet and grabbed a handful of the gold and silver and purple ones, throwing them into the fountain, making the Great Fairy's eyes go wide and sparkly. "Ooooh~! How pretty my fountain is now~!! It's overflowing with power~! You're too kind, dear Linky~ And you, Paya, was it?" She suddenly turned to the mostly red and white maiden, who bowed deep at the sudden acknowledgement, knocking her diamond circlet loose from her head again. But this time it came completely off, falling from her hair and into the fountain.

The Great Fairy blinked, "Oh~? Was that an offering too, dear~?"

...Aaactually that WAS a precious heirloom passed down for generations... Buuut Paya was NOT about to work up the nerve to ask for it back if the Great Cotera wanted it, she had to just trust that surely her people would understand... Again... "Y-Yes! Of course! I hope you enjoy it, ma'am!"

"Ooooh~~~ You're BOTH too kind~!" Cotera replied, seeming pleased as she plucked up the diamond circlet and put it on one of her only free fingers as a ring. "Now then~! Is there anything I can do for the two of you on this beautiful and, ahem~... Rather -romantic- moonlit night~~??" She inquired suddenly, her voice a little huskier than usual, sounding a bit like her sandy desert sister for a second...

Link blushed and rubbed behind his head, "Well actually Cotera, if it wouldn't be too much to ask, I was wondering if it would be alright with you to let Paya and I take a dip in your fountain before I return her home? Since she came all this way~?" He added pleadingly like the Great Fairies often did, batting his eyes back at her. 

Of course she couldn't deny him anything either, let alone such a humble and yet exciting request. "OHOOOOO~! I see, I see! Why of COOOOURSE, after all, what's a fountain for if not for a lil DIP~? I wouldn't let just anyone, but a champion and a chaste maiden~? I can make an exception tonight, I think! DO enjoy yourselves you two, and don't worry, I won't disturb you at ALL~! OHOHOHOOO~! BYEEEEEEEE~!"

Diving back down deep into her pool, Cotera left the two of them alone then, Link blushing at least half as bad as Paya as he turned back to her again, still sheepishly rubbing his head, "Aha, well, I think we're alone now... And Cotera gave us her permission after all, so... Do I still have yours, Paya? Do you want to proceed...?" With a girl as shy as her, he felt he ought to ask before even getting undressed, let alone before beginning anything... 

Predictably, she covered her eyes with her hands and blushed even harder with full crimson color, "Y-Y-Yes... I'm s-still sure, I'm j-just s-so n-nervous...! I can't believe... We're really s-so c-close...! I... I WAS told the basics, about what to expect, b-but... I barely got through even that without passing out from embarrassment! I just hope my nervousness won't make things difficult, Master Link..."

Maybe not the case for some guys, but to be honest it WAS kind of a problem for Link... He got the idea that Paya didn't want it to be, but it was still going to be if she didn't ease up at least a bit... Link had a bit of an idea what to do about it, well, he had one idea anyways, and if it didn't work, well, Link might have to have a different kind of talk with Paya then, about maybe giving Gerudo Town a try... "Hey, Paya... Would you mind if I asked you for a hug? I used to get them from my mom and sister a lot as a kid... My dad too, a few times when I was really young... I distanced myself from it as a teen when I went into training, but now as an adult it's really hard to find someone to hug when it feels like I really need one... What about you Paya, did Impa or your parents hug you much as a kid?"

She swallowed against her own dry throat and nodded, though her eyes looked much sadder after he brought up her parents. "I... Also remember my parents and grandmother Impa hugging me, when I was little... My parents p-passed when I was still young though... Since becoming an adult, grandmother tends to just pat me on the back when I do well... B-But, of course I wouldn't at all mind a hug from you, Master Link!"

Oh yes. And THAT... "Paya... Please, if you wouldn't mind, I understand if you feel more comfortable keeping it up in the village, but at least here, tonight... Would you just call me 'Link'?"

She somehow managed to blush harder than ever at that, and stammered in shock for a moment or two before finally replying, "Wha--? Aaah... Okay... Of course, whatever you want, L-L-Link..." She steeled herself and took a deep breath, "Link... Please, go ahead..."

He didn't waste any more time, but he moved slow, taking a short step forward into her personal space, then inching his arms around her shivering frame until he finally had his arms enclosed around her. She was shaking, of course, but it seemed that the closer he got to her, the more the shaking actually calmed a bit... And when he finally pulled her in, chest to chest, and laid his head down on her shoulder and neck, she suddenly stopped shaking altogether, and let out a deep sigh. Her arms folded around his back, she dug her head against his opposite shoulder and neck, and she squeezed him as tight as he dared to squeeze her...

Link began to murmer in her ear after a moment or two, "You know... If everything turns out alright in the end... I kind of actually find myself hoping one of you gals get the child you were asking for too... I'd tell Zelda about everything, because she knows she'll always come first, but... I really want to meet them... I want to give them a big hug, just like this... I really hope I'll have time to teach them some things and spend time with them too, but at the very least... I just want them to have some of these to remember me by..."

Paya tightened her arms around him, her eyes welling up with water. "M-Ma... I m-mean... L-Link... Please... Don't let things trouble you so... It might not mean much from me but... I... I really truly believe in you, Link! I believe you'll save her, your princess, your destiny--I believe you'll get her back for all of us, and that you'll come back to us too! You'll come back safe, and whole, and... Free... And when you do... Well, I don't know about the other girls, but... I know I'll be waiting for you to come back and visit us. The Sheikah magic will definitely ensure conception of a male heir..."

Link wanted to believe most of that would be true, but that last part gave him pause, "Does it... Have to, though? I just can't help but feel such an important thing should be left to chance... Everything else in life we get to choose, but shouldn't the gods choose that for us?"

Paya took a step back and looked down at her own belly. "I... Simply learned the spell when they told me to, I never really thought about it... I think you're probably right though... No matter what, it is only still my duty if you approve it, so... If the others in the village get what they want at all, it's only at your discretion. As long as the heir is still your blood, I can't see how they could complain... I... I would not let them, Link!" She suddenly insisted, not shy, but even a little indignant at the thought. "If a daughter is born by us then she's just as sacred as a boy would have been! They'll either accept both of us or we'll... We'll find somewhere that does!" 

Well, so that's what it came to... Paya wasn't just blindly obedient after all. She had her own feelings and desires, she was just a peaceable person who wanted to avoid turmoil and help out. But when it came right down to it... She WOULD fight, in her own way, for what was truly right too. That made Link smile, as much as her belief in him did... It was even better to know she really DID believe in herself too, deep down...

"I'm sure it won't be a problem either way, Paya." Link soothed her, patting her shoulder as he stepped back. "But I'm glad to know you'll be a good and devoted mother no matter what... Now then..." He blushed as he took as looked down at his clothes, the green-dyed Hylian hood set. The hood was already pulled back, and he unclasped it at the neck then, letting it fall. "Is it... Okay if the two of us go for that swim now...?"

She ducked her head down, but she nodded quickly... He found himself a little nervous like her, but excited and hopeful... He couldn't help but feel like he did that night over a hundred years ago, with Mipha... One person a virgin, the other more experienced, going for a swim together... The both of them such shy people but trying their best for each other... It was a lot like it was back then. He suddenly remembered it more clearly than ever too. Most of it had come back in Zora's Domain, but being with Paya tonight... He suddenly remembered how he'd shed a tear, that very first time... Mipha had wiped it away, and he had smiled for her to let her know it was alright...

Swallowing against a lump in his throat, Link began to pull off his gloves and then his shirt off over his head... Soon he was bare-chested before Paya, who was only barely just starting to work the nerve to look past her fingers. Link glanced up at the eyes between them, "...Everything look okay to you so far? If not I'll put everything back on, but if you do like everything, I can keep going...?"

Her fingers slowly curled into balled up fists under her eyes, allowing herself to look fully at least, if still too shy to let the blush on her cheeks be free... "I... Like it... You can k-keep going..."

Link took in and then let out a nervous breath. "Alright..." He nodded, and before he lost his nerve around her, he quickly but not TOO quickly shimmied and then pulled his trousers down for her, revealing his cock underneath, still shy because neither of them were still sure yer how everyone would get along... Hopefully she wouldn't all out pass out, please goddesses don't do that at least...

She didn't but she did definitely look like her knees were getting shaky as soon as he kicked off his boots and stood completely naked there... He let everything, well, hang out, for just a few seconds, but then he got shy and covered mostly up with one hand... "Is it... Still alright, P-Paya...?" Oh gods, now HE was stuttering... She seriously had him feeling like a damn virgin himself again... 

Her eyes just barely flicked over to the general direction of his naked form before quickly focusing on a tree in the completely opposite direction... It took her an extra minute to think of what to say, and another extra one to work the nerve to say it, but finally she managed, "It... I mean... Th-They always c-compared it to a sword... I always knew it wouldn't look exactly like a sword, b-but... I'm j-just so glad it's not p-p-pointy--!"

Link's eyes went completely wide and he couldn't help but exclaim at that, "Good GODDESSES, no WONDER you were so nervous all this time--!" SERIOUSLY, Sheikah Tribe? You guys can record every detail of the past but you can't come up with better sex education than THAT?? Then again, maybe that was some kind of fucked up tactic to keep the chosen female chaste, ugh... 

Paya flushed at her own ignorance, even though it couldn't be helped... "I-I'm sorry..." She apologized, even though it wasn't her that should offer it.

Link just sighed and shook his head, "Listen... I'm gonna get into the fountain, give myself a soak for about half an hour... I'll turn my back to you while I'm in, and you can either join me when you're ready, or you can make your way back home. Whatever you're most comfortable with. I won't be disappointed no matter what you choose, promise." He told her calmly, before doing just what he said and slipping into the fountain feet-first, re-emerging, and then leaning his back against one of the mushrooms and stretching his arms out. 

At first there was silence for a moment or two. then some rustling.... But the rustling wasn't moving away, it stayed in one spot... Paya was taking off her clothes... 

He waited patiently, and after a few more moments he could feel her form cautiously advancing towards him. He stayed silent, and finally after an agonizing few minutes she managed to cross the five feet or so to stand almost directly behind him, just a step off to the side. "M... L-Link...?"

He didn't move yet, but he acknowledged her, "Yes?"

She seemed unsure of what she was about to say next, and admittedly it came out almost sounding rehearsed... "I-If... If you desire t-to, y-you may... Inspect me f-first..."

He shrugged without even looking around. "I don't desire to do anything that would make you uncomfortable. And I don't need to inspect you because I already know I can trust you..." As if he actually needed to get a magnifying glass to tell that Paya was telling the truth about being a virgin, pft... To drive the point home, he asked her in turn, "Why, do you want to inspect me again? Didn't seem like you got too good a look last time, so..."

She began to sputter again, so he dropped the light teasing right away, and with a chuckle, he motioned idly to the water next to him. "LIsten, Paya... Can you do me a favor, and just... Abandon all expectations, forget everything you've ever been told, and just get in the water with me...?"

Thankfully staying calm seemed to work on her nerves, and she slowly sat down on the rim of the giant mushroom caps, and slid inside the water next to him, letting herself sink until only her nose and face above it was emerging from the fountain. Still though, she was right next to him, so... That was progress!

Link leaned back and relaxed, waiting for Paya to hopefully do the same. He trusted that she'd call this all off and decline if she really didn't want to, but it seemed much more like she really DID want to, just... Clearly any seduction classes any former sheikah maidens had endured had been deemed too hazardous to Paya's health...

Moving with deliberate slowness, Link let out a fake yawn and raised his hands up in a stretch, idly letting on arm fall on the mushroom just behind Paya... Who allowed it, and pulled herself up just the slightest, so that the back of his arm would touch her back and neck... The water was now at the level of her chin, freeing her lips to speak, which she hesitantly did, after a moment, "Um... Link...?"

He opened one eye, "Yeah?"

"Y-You... Said you'd done this before...? Is it okay if I ask... W-What were the others like? What did they do that got your attention like that...?"

She seemed really genuinely curious about it. But it also seemed like she was looking for some kind of sign to take, or a lead to follow. To combat that, he simply answered most honestly, "Well... They were just themselves... They reached out to me, and if I liked them, I took them by the hand for a while... I couldn't stay with any of them, because I had to keep moving, to find my true destiny, the princess, but... I still... I still love everyone I loved. I don't think that will ever change, even if we never see each other again, though I hope we will... Also... Having waited over a hundred years for me... I'm sure Zelda would appreciate it more if I had a bunch of good stories to tell her once I get her back, rather than any more expectations of her that she had enough of getting a hundred years ago... When I free her, I want her to be as truly free and wild as I've gotten to be the last few years since waking up here... She deserves that too... If she wants me? Of course she can have me, and anything else she wants, after everything she's done and all she's sacrificed, I'll give or get her anything, but... If she doesn't even want me by her side, if that's too painful a reminder and she'd rather I just protect her from afar, I'd do that too..."

He then looked back over at Paya, who blushed and held her arms up in front of her bosom instinctively as he told her, "You deserve that kind of freedom too... Though I understand if you're more the type to prefer staying in a nice safe home... I get a lot of people are like that and don't really like to travel much, especially since it's so dangerous right now, but... I hope once I finally get rid of the last of Ganon's influence and the worst of the monsters, people will travel more... When that day comes to pass Paya, is there any place in the world you've ever wanted to go if you could?"

Her eyes went big at that question. That was obviously something no one had ever even thought to ask her before. Hey gee Miss Shrine Maiden who can never leave her shrine's village, where would you go if you could go anywhere in the world? So yeah, he didn't mind the sputtering this time, and gave her an extra minute to think about it before finally shyly replying, "W-Well, I DO love my home, truly I do, I've always loved Kakariko and will always be devoted to it, but... If I am to be completely honest, I've always dreamed of getting to meet my Grand-Auntie Purah in Hateno in person... Grandma Impa and I have exchanged letters with her every few years when we can, she's always so nice, complimenting the pictures I send her and sending back a book or two with the messenger sometimes... And it's only right to meet your kin in person if you can, right? Purah is even older than Grandma Impa so I should probably try to see her soon if I can..."

Link didn't mention it, but definitely thought to himself, 'Eh, don't worry Paya, you should still have plenty of time, probably...' Instead he encouraged her, and himself, by telling her, "Well then... After I finally get the sword of legend and get Zelda back, and get a few things tied up at the castle... We'll come back for you and accompany you on a trip to Hateno, Paya, I promise. You... And, well, the child you'll probably have by then, and maybe even Impa too if she thinks she can handle the trip... We'll all go to visit Auntie Purah in Hateno together, with Zelda. All of us... K-Kinda like a family, I guess, if that's okay with you...? I got a house in Hateno, you know, but I think Zelda would feel better to have a sort of family to come home to as well, not just a home... I definitely know I would..." He concluded, his throat getting a little thick as he stared off into the glistening waters... 

Paya sputtered a little, but quickly caught her voice back from her throat as she answered, suddenly almost confident again, "I-I'd love that! That would be so amazing, Link! I want to do it too!" She suddenly went all red over that outburst, realizing just what she'd said, in her naked state, but strangely, she didn't start sputtering over it... Instead she, in a strange mix of her newfound confidence and lingering shyness, began to slowly wade closer to him in the water, and softly mused... "Then... I suppose, I should... D-Do my part... To make that wonderful future come to pass... L-Link...?"

She looked over at him then, hesitant but questioning. still shy and still worried, but not... Unsure. Not anymore. She looked finally close to Ready... 

Close to it anyways, but...

Link didn't yet move from his spot, leaning against the rim of the fountain, except to briefly beckon her closer with a single finger. "How about another hug first...?" He inquired hopefully, giving her a relaxed wink.

She blushed something fierce, but she was smiling now too... She nodded, and slowly waded closer to him. He held out his hand to her, and she reached out for it, letting him pull her in closer until they were right next to each other, right in front of each other... Then they reached out and around each other, Paya still shaking but Link arms strong and secure as he enclosed them around her, steadying her quaking form against him. She let out a small squeak, her legs instinctively squeezing shut initially as she felt his manhood brush against her lower stomach and navel, making her tummy twist in strange ways, especially combined with how her naked breasts and nipples were right up against his, and he was staring up at her with as least half as much of a blush as her. "Everything still alright, Paya...? If so... Can I maybe... Kiss you now...?"

Her face full red, she just barely managed to nod once more for him, certainly too shy to say anymore now, she simply closed her eyes and leaned in, puckering up just a little for him but super self-conscious that she was doing it too much, Link just smiled and leaned in one last time, setting his hands on her cheeks, he drew her in just a little closer, and with a little bit of his old naive spirit of wonder still in him, he puckered up just a little at first too as their lips first met...

Paya melted into a sigh nearly as soon as they came together, a barrier seemingly coming down for her when she finally felt his kiss, her mouth falling slightly open in an 'O'. Sensing the opportunity, Link hesitantly slipped his tongue out and ran it along Paya's bottom lip, silently asking permission to go further. She gasped at first, unsure, so Link waited to go further... But then, to his immense surprise and intense satisfaction, her hands on his shoulder finally grasped at him, and she turned her head into the kiss, opened her mouth a little wider, and slipped her own tongue into Link's mouth.

Link let her search a little while, a moan almost ready to release in the back of his throat at how Paya seemed to finally be getting into it... And when Paya wrapped her legs around him under the water, clutching onto his shoulders even tighter as she pressed their bodies completely together, he had to let that moan flow into her mouth, the arm around her waist boldly sneaking over her birthmarked cheek... 

Paya suddenly gasped and pulled back from the kiss again, blushing deep and panting hard, "Ah! W-Wait, Master Link... I w-want to continue, b-but... Um..."

Link grinned and then stuck out his tongue playfully, "Ah, I know. Lets get out of the water now -- Cotera doesn't need a free show on top of all the rupees I gave her!"

(( SIIIIIIIIIIIGH... OKAY I'M GONNA LIKE... -TRY- to add at least a fuckin summary of what I was gonna do w this over the next coupla days or so, at least so... To start, yeah, I WROTE LINK AND PAYA GETTING UP TO ALL KINDS OF HOT SHIT BEFORE MY COMPUTER DECIDED TO GO 'FUCK YOU'... Link was OFC being a total gentleman and going very slow with Paya, until she was ready for more, she's being super cute and responsive to everything he does, then he rocks her world on Cotera's mushroom bed well into the night. After they finish up 'making their masterpiece', Link and Paya get ready to leave again but before they go Cotera comes up and gives Paya's circlet back to her, saying it's okay bc it turns out she already had one, and also Paya might need it more to protect her poor little head from the Guardian making it's way to Kakariko. XD Paya in turn gives the circlet to Link to protect him, since it's been blessed by Cotera and is extra protective now. Link thanks her and takes it, takes her home and tucks her in bed, and promises to come back and see their masterpiece once it's finished~

Then Link goes out and defeats the Guardian that was trying to get into the village, and finds a little cave to rest for the rest of the night. While sleeping there, Link dreams of another spirit, this time of his little sister Arynya. His sister goes on to tell Link of her fate, how she couldn't stand to just stay at their old home alone after Link and then her father never came back. She knew she wasn't strong enough as she was to help, so she decided to seek out her mother's people, the Gerudo. The trip was very dangerous and she almost died, but with the luck of the goddesses she made it. Once she got there she told the Gerudo about her mother, and she was accepted into their people, and began training in their ways. A few years passed and she became a very skilled Gerudo warrior despite her small Hylian size. 

One day a young male traveler comes to Gerudo Town, and obviously, denied entry. But Arynya feels bad for him because he is in poor health, he is sick with the disease that claimed her mother. He needs molduga guts to get well and came a very long way to try and get them, only to run out of strength so close. She's moved by his will to live and goes out to fight the molduga for him herself. Seeing that she means it, a few other Gerudo are rallied into helping her, and together they take down the beast. Arynya gives her share of molduga guts to the adventurer, and he's so grateful that he falls in love with her. She goes on adventures with him and is impressed by his skills, and slowly falls in love with him too. Eventually he convinces her to leave Gerudo Town behind and come adventuring with him in the wide, wild world.

They are a formidable pair, they defeat many monsters and take their loot, they even sneak into Hyrule Castle once and manage to get a handful of very expensive stuff there too. Eventually they get bored of risking their lives and want to settle down, and they go to the Hebra region to do so. Arynya's husband builds them a little lodge at the bottom of the Hebra Tower, and they live there happily for many years. They try but never have children, they adventured just a little too long, but it doesn't bother them too much. They treat anyone daring enough to make it to their lodge like grandchildren, doting on them generously to make sure they make it wherever they're going...

Arynya unfortunately eventually gets sick of the same disease though... Her brave husband, Pondo, tries to seek out the molduga guts for her, but by the time he gets back with them, it's too late. He laments his inability to return the favor for many years, but tries his best to keep up his spirit by making games to entice travelers with, and should they win, he's always very generous with prizes... Link suddenly understands, and he suddenly sees old Pondo's spirit next to Arynya. Pondo laughs and tells Link not to feel bad about taking off with so many of his rupees, in fact, since he's his wife Arynya's only next of kin, he technically now owns everything buried behind Pondo's lodge too, which is quiiiiite a lot. Link thanks him, not mostly for the money though, but for taking care of his sister in his absence. 

After that Link wakes up and wanders out of the cave, continuing on his adventure... ))


	6. UNFINISHED Zelda finale (ADDED FINAL/ENDING NOTES)

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> none of this is proof'd or edited at ALL read at your own risk and fuck this whole story and the life it took from me oh my GOD

(( HOKAY, just to explain a few things first, the differences to the story/canon I've made so far -- First of all, in this chapter I mentioned a Sheikah member goes to take the sword to the Lost Woods instead of Zelda. This is bc I don't think it seems likely that Zelda would have had the time to go from one place to the other to the other after the other before finally getting back to take on Ganon. Like is Mr. Pig Monster just gonna wait around longer once he's started the rampage? IDK probably that new Hyrule Warriors will cover more of the details of it but I don't plan on playing that game for a long time if ever. I just think it's more realistic that one team of Sheikah took Link to the SOR, another trusted Sheikah or two took the sword to the Lost Woods, and Zelda took on Ganon herself. Plus the cut-scene with her and the Deku Tree like it's cute for us the players but "Please tell him--" "Eh tell him yourself lmao" I mean... Then I guess she WILL just tell him herself and I don't need to rewrite that memory/scene and just make a quick dumb joke instead! XD;;

Second of all, more might come out about Link's backstory later, but if it doesn't I decided to just go ahead and take liberties for the story myself. I decided that Link's mom was a Gerudo, and I also decided that Gerudo's having sons was still very rare in BOTW, but not exactly once in a hundred years kind of rare. I think there's enough hints to suggest after enough interbreeding with Hylians it probably changed their biology at least a SMIDGE. IMO, I think it makes more sense that, lets say, for every 50-60 children born from Gerudo in about a 30-40 year time span, at least one or two or rarely even as many as 3 will actually be male. I'm also changing the detail that the Gerudo's Chiefs go back years and are always passed on through a family line. This doesn't make sense to me because they got rid of the rule of the king, and besides that Gerudo seem more like the type to honor power or wisdom with authority rather then just always blindly handing it over to next of kin. The Gerudo obviously seem like they all consider each other as sisters so why would one family's daughters always be more important than the rest?

SO, my idea is that Urbosa died childless and therefore a new leader had to be chosen another way. I decided that it made some sense that, instead of making a boy king, when a new chief is needed, the mother of the first Gerudo boy that steps up is made chief instead, otherwise if there are currently no women like that, they choose based on who is strongest/smartest instead, which is undoubtedly how Urbosa was chosen. Mothers of a new son also have the right to challenge the current leader for the role, but many/most in fact do not. Most Gerudo who have a rare male will either stay with their husbands to raise them, like Link's mother, or leave the boy with the father/his family and go back to their Gerudo lifestyle. Of course no one would challenge Urbosa during her lifetime, but afterwards I see a few squabbles for the throne for a few years after her death and in the chaos of what was happening. I don't think the Gerudo leader position was a very set in stone thing for several years after Urbosa's death. 

Perhaps the first chief after Urbosa was chosen for having a son, but died years later without having any other children. So then Riju's mother has a son next, I'm deciding it's actually Vilia and that he and Riju are half brother and sister. She claims the throne and she is popular for being a very wise and scholarly leader. She is not the average Gerudo Guard type although she's no pushover either, but she's more into art and research, and under her leadership Gerudo Town blooms again. But unfortunately when the Yiga attack, her scholarly pursuits cannot help her. After she dies the Gerudo are at a loss, because no one else has had a male child in a while and with the Yiga on the move and with the Thunder Helm in their possession, people are afraid they might be next if they step up. There's also the very delicate matter of how to handle Riju. I think Riju was actually made "chief" as a way of the entire tribe adopting her/protecting her after her mother died. It's more of a temporary/honorary thing while she's still young, like yes she IS the chief/really will be in the future but also Buliara is basically there as a co-chief to advise her until she's old enough to take over fully. But Riju has a lot of her mother's wisdom and inner courage too, so it doesn't take long to prove herself as a worthy successor either. And when she manages to take down the Divine Beast with Link, yeah, after that nobody is gonna question why she's chief despite her age. XP

ALSO, regarding the Blood Moon, it DOES still exist but like, its obviously mostly a game-thing, just like the Korok Seeds. I mentioned in another chapter that monsters breed in this fic. I DO realize that that the Blood Moon is the reason why monsters keep coming back in the game, but I changed it a bit for this fic. Here, the monsters both occasionally breed and also spawn from the castle/dark world/evil lightning/etc. IMO I think it makes sense that low-level enemies breed and high-level enemies either spawn from the castle or from random malice-infused lightning strikes, since the game mentions something about that too, while the Blood Moon serves to bring back SKELETONS to life after they've been killed to keep fighting during the night. So like, low-level bokoblins are gonna breed a small batch every 2-5 years, moblins and lizalfos are a few every 10 years, whilst low-level lynels breed much slower, probably only one every 20 years, and even then its rare for the young not to be cannibalized by an adult, since I don't see lynels being model parents most of the time (and also male lions often do this, so it make sense to me) lol. Otherwise silver and gold enemies only spawn from the castle/malice-lightning maybe once every 20 years as well. IMO I don't think the mechanical Guardians should be able to respawn with the Blood Moon, so here at least they don't. When Ganon is defeated all of the strongest enemies will be banished back to the dark world with him, the weakest (only the lowest level bokoblins and maybe a few non-elemental lizalfos) will remain in Hyrule but they will be extremely easy for the remaining races to pick off until they are endangered and hiding in caves again.

OKAY I thiiiiiiink that's all the details for now... So, onto this (FUCKING CRAZY LOOOOOOONG) final chapter!! XD ))

OoOoOoOoOoOoOoOoO

Leaving Kakariko behind, Link ventured out into the wilds once more to face his final trials. The first of which he initially assumed to be his last, tackling the fog-infested Lost Woods where the Sword that Seals the Darkness was said to lie.

Link found himself a little doubtful though, even after having wielded that sword once before. After all if that sword sealed the darkness so well then how come these woods were so DARK...? He found himself turned around back to the beginning so many times, he actually had to force himself to stop before he started to question his sanity, go back to the nearest stable, and try again after a meal and a mental break.

He found himself having to do that... Several times... For several weeks, months... For the love of the gods it was MADDENING...! Even those completely pitch-black Thyphlo (Thy-flo? Tai-flo? MAYBE PLOYMUS WASN'T SO BAD...) ruins nearby hadn't given him this hassle because despite the darkness he could still make out different things when they were near enough to him and his torch, in fact if anything the darkness and all the strange sounds in it made him more alert and on edge. 

But these damned woods? EVERYTHING LOOKED EXACTLY THE SAME!! Everywhere he looked, no matter how far he went, it was the SAME DAMNED TREES! The same disorienting static-like noise and distant mocking laughter... And the gods-be-damned FOG?! Instead of making him alert it constantly dulled his senses, making him trip or lose his way or get turned around in circles. There were times he'd stop by a tree just to take a small breather, find his eyes growing heavy, and before he knew it, the sound of shrill, impish laughter woke him up on the ground next to the entrance once again...

Whoever had decided to hide the Master Sword here of all places... GOOD JOB! IT WAS A REALLY GREAT HIDING PLACE! BUT ALSO FUCK THAT GUY!! HOW THE HELL HAD -HE- MANAGED TO GET THE SWORD HERE AND GET OUT AGAIN??

...Then he came across a skeleton laid down by a tree in Sheikah-style clothing, and he decided not to be so hard on the guy after all... Good job, old buddy... Link stopped for a few seconds to close his eyes and pray for him...

BUT WHEN HE OPENED HIS EYES HE WAS BACK AT THE ENTRANCE SO FUCK THAT GUY ALL OVER AGAIN!!!

That night, taking another break at the Woodland Stable, Link found himself having one of his 'usual' strange dreams. This time he was visited by the visage of a giant Monk. The Monk to End All Monks. Link looked up, guessing correctly that he must have a special message, and so the monk wasted no time, "What keeps you from your quest, hero?"

Link got a bit annoyed at that. "Uh... My QUEST is keeping me from my quest? I'm trying to find the sword that seals the darkness so I can at last challenge the Calamity and free Princess Zelda, but this forest seems impossible to navigate? You can barely see a giant tree in the middle from afar, I know that's where the sword must be, but the cursed fog surrounding it is relentless..."

The monk nodded his huge head, "Your goal is noble... But no progress has been made lately. It won't do to waste time without anything to show for it. Leave the forest for now. You have one more series of trials before you can claim that sword, and if you can complete them, I shall bestow upon you a historical treasure of the utmost rarity, a piece of forgotten technology that will be of great use to your quest... And to be quite frank I have it on good authority that a certain princess would be much more impressed with this forgotten technology than she would be with that old sword... After all you have to bring the sword no matter what, but I also have it on good authority that when you've been away from a lady for a long time, a present of some kind is in order, no? And to top it off... The trial you must succeed in order to acquire the ancient technology... Passing it would no doubt prove you to be one of the greatest, strongest and most cunning heroes of all time..."

UUUUUGH. Okay so now he basically HAD to do this, with both his Guilt and his Ego working together to goad him into it... "Alright, alright, what do I do...?"

The Monk proceeded to tell him to go back to the Shrine of Resurrection. Upon arriving there, Link was then told to put his sheikah slate back on the terminal. Once done, his map was marked with several nearby locations pinpointed, and then to his further surprise, a very strange weapon materialized in the room nearby. It was like a four-pronged trident (quadrident...?), but it was held in one hand like a sword instead of with two on a pole like a normal trident-spear. It was also all glowy and weird-looking, with protective slips of sacred paper attached for some kind of extra protection. And oh yeah, it was floating in mid-air and just exuding an aura of danger in general... This was NOT a normal weapon of any kind...

Naturally, Link was hesitant to touch it, but he kinda knew that was why he was here, so... Taking a deep breath, he reached out, sealed his palm around the hilt, and--FUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUCK--!!!

In a matter of seconds, every inch of his strength was sapped out of his body, and pain coursed through every nerve. It was like this weapon had just full-body slammed him and then sucked him dry like a vampire, even managing to bring him down to his knees before it was done, and leaving him feeling like he was surely at death's door, barely strong enough to keep wielding the traitorous weapon. Only then did the monk's voice once again entered his mind to explain, "I am Maz Koshia... I now address the one who wishes to master a Divine Beast... To undertake this test required unwavering dedication..." Um NO? Knight Academy had taken 'unwavering dedictation", THIS? THIS WAS HIS NUTS AND EVER OTHER PART OF HIS BODY IN A VICE-GRIP... But still, despite that definitely being the case, Link forced himself to get back up to his feet, to at least prove to this bastard monk who was probably laughing his shrunken-ass off back in his shrine that he could take it... 

The monk went on with his explanation, "That weapon defeats foes with one hit. However, the reverse is also true, as it's wielder will fall to a single strike..." Did these guys really even WANT him to succeed here...? "You can use this weapon only when it is glowing, only twice in a given time period. Go to the locations on the Great Plateau marked on your map and defeat all the monsters present to prove your power. If you're not up for the challenge, leave the plateau. The weapon will return here and the challenge will end..." 

Good to know, but also, that was basically Monk Maz's way of goading him into going through with it -- Oh what ya big baby, gonna run away and jump off the plateau because you can't handlle being as weak the average Joe? But this was something else... Heck without this fancy new weapon even the average Joe could kick his ass right now... The last time he felt this weak was, well, damn, just before the last time he'd been taken to the Shrine of Resurrection...

But apparently the end of this promised some grand reward, something that would make Zelda's green eyes go all watery, so... Yeah, worth dying for. If he was gonna see her again after all this time it had to be with something cool enough to make up for the hundred year nap and the almost ten extra years he had needed to finally face their ultimate foe and get her back... And Zelda did love ancient tech, the sheikah slate had been her absolute pet before he inherited it, so if there was any hard feelings about his tardiness then surely that would soften them...

But nothing was going to soften the hard-ass trek ahead, through dark brambly woods, over snowy peaks, braving the monsters from afar, wisely choosing to rely on his arrows more than anything. But even that wasn't foolproof, he found himself more than a few times running away like a coward when out of obliterator hits, but as soon as he could, he came back for more and finished the job. 

Still though, it was harrowing as all hell, every squeak and flap of a keese behind his ears sent him into an embarassing panic, running around like a maniac because his life really did depend on it. 

After seriously starting to wonder if this Mad Maz dude was secretly working for the Yiga a few times, Link scraped his way through the last of the four extra shrines he had to find. It was one extra thing after another! He thought he was gonna die from the exhaustion, every time he tried to eat something it was like it turned to air once it hit his stomach, leaving him with no extra energy than when he started. For DAYS...

The O.H.O. did come in handy though, especially when they pit him up against a Guardian Scout in one shrine, DAMN... But the Obliterator didn't help him much in the next one when he had to go through LASER AND FIRE TRAPS IN NEAR DARKNESS...

Thankfully though after he emerged from that shrine, his strength and vigor prompty returned to him, filling him with life energy once more. The Mad Monk's voice filled his head once more, "I am Maz Koshia. You have done well to conquer the trials laid before you. You are Hyrule's beacon of hope." YEAH~ Not to too his own horn but DAMN RIGHT HE WAS, AFTER ALL THAT-- "But your trials have only just begun..." OH COME ON!!

So of COURSE there was something ELSE, AGAIN... The weapon proceeded to lead him back to the Shrine of Resurrection, where he was once again instructed to hand up the OHO and then place the shiekah slate on the terminal, and supposedly THEN the "final" passageway would FINALLY really reveal itself. 

The doors closed behind him then, and the room started to rumble. "Descending... Please beware of tremors..." Oh crap, maybe it was for real this time--! Link quickly secured a hold on the terminal then, as the room suddenly turned into an elevator and began to go down, deep down... 

It really freaked Link out sometimes to wonder just how many giant holes and caves there were underneath his feet at any given minute, for all these shrines to be built so deep down underground... And this one, hoo boy... This one was a doozy... It just kept doing down, down, down... Into the belly of a completely unknown Divine Beast. One complete with, just from a glance, deathly spikes and fire traps and lava pits and guardian scouts and giant grinding gears of death and--Just... Fuck it. BRING IT.

It took all of his wits and then some, he had no memories of even glancing at whatever kind of beast this was from the outside and now he had to figure it out from the inside... Gods only knew how much time it took him, there was no way to tell it in here, so when he finally did manage to unlock the final gate to meet the Mad Monk Maz Koshia himself... He actually stopped before immediately going to greet him at his post. He had a feeling this guy didn't just have the spirit orb and the special prize in store for him...

So he didn't feel too bad laying on the floor for a short nap in front of the guy, and then waking up to retrieve one of the time-frozen prepared meals from his sheikah slate's special food storage pouch. Yum, seafood paella~ Sorry skinny monk guy, he'd share but he had a feeling there'd be no point...

So when he was done, he at last went up to the patient Maz Koshia, who greeted him, "You have proven to possess the power of a true hero..." Right, right, he was totally awesome, get on with it... "In the name of the Goddess Hylia..." ...Wait, what the fuck... Was that finger twitching--? HOLY SHIT IT WAS MOVING!!

Okay THAT was completely freaky and unexpected! Sort of! With more than a hundred and a dozen shrines completed and monks met, none of them, not ONE, had ever MOVED, sure as HELL had never GOTTEN UP LIKE THIS CREEPY BASTARD WAS DOING NOW! WHY WAS THIS SACK OF SKIN AND SKELETONS SO DAMN IMPOSINGLY SCARY? Oooh CRAP now it was fully standing, facing him...!

"I offer this FINAL trial!"

He disappeared Link away, sheikah slate style, to reappear a moment later at a gigantic arena in the middle of the SKY. Then he reappeared himself not far away from Link, taking a fighting stance before him, his limbs flowing like water... 

Link shoved his nerves out with a breath of air, grit his teeth, and got serious... This... Was going to SUCK. But damn it he was going to KICK THIS OLD, OLD, OLD MAN'S BONY ASS!

Hooooooly SHIT this guy could take a lot of hits, though. And hooooly SHIT he was FAST, with all the skills of the greatest Yiga assassins. He clearly had been a spy for both teams in his lifetime. THIS was the kind of fight Link had been expecting all those years of having Yiga soldiers talk up their big bad Master Kohga, only to find out when he went to retrieve the Thunder Helm that the guy was weaker than some of his underlings...

But THIS guy? Link didn't feel bad calling him Mad Maz now...

THEN the dude started turning into dozens of himself... THEN the dude started turning into a GIANT version of himself... THEN he started doing the shit Kohga tried to do but ACTUALLY COMPETENTLY?? AND THEN, JUST TO BE EXTRA-EXTRA, HE STARTED SHOOTING GUARDIAN LASER BEAMS FROM HIS FREAKING EYE AT HIS FREAKING HEAD!!

When he finally, FINALLY hit the Mad Monk that one final time that made him groan out long and loud and nearly topple back, he stopped, took a breath of relief himself, knowing it was over at last... The monk slowly straightened out again, and with a web of light, he returned to his true size, floating before Link. 

Slowly walking towards him, Link looked up expectantly as the monk addressed him for the last time, "You faced that challenge with great courage." No KIDDING... That stupid forest, and Ganon? He knew damn well he could face both of them now, having beat THIS crazy motherfu-- "You have erased all doubt from my mind. You are a true hero." ...Well thanks for doubting, jerk. Even if you are pretty strong yourself that's kinda rude? Sheesh, this Koshia guy must be a distant relative of Revali... "As such, you were destined to take hold of this ancient masterpiece..."

Huh? Oh yeah, he'd almost forgotten he was here to get that crazy-amazing one of a kind ancient tech for Zelda. YEAH, HAND IT OVER, OLD MAN! WHOA--!

He very promptly began to get what he was wishing for, as the whole arena began to shake and rumble and rearrange itself into a centerpiece, opening up in the middle and slowly ascending, rotating, with the grand prize in the middle of the platform... HOLY MOTHER OF ALL COOL ASS THINGS, WHAT IN THE HEAVENS WAS THAT--?!

IT... WAS A SWEET ASS TECHNOLOGICAL HORSE?! ON WHEELS?? He didn't even need to be told but Maz Koshia pointed it out to him anyways as it was stored in the sheikah slate on a rune, "That which you have obtained... Is a masterpiece of innovation, created for the one true hero. Hero of Hyrule... May the Goddess smile upon you."

He found himself waking a short while after that back at the Shrine of Resurrection... He walked outside to greet the morning sun, only to find Kass the Rito of all people perched just outside. He greeted the hero on sight, "Hm? Ah, it's you. I can't put my feathers on it but I get the feeling you're even more accomplished than when we last met... I happen to have the perfect song for someone as esteemed as you! I would love to sing it for you... My teacher's unfinished song, the one I told you about... I finally completed the key verses!" 

Link smiled for his friend's ambitions finally coming to light. He loved music and had been pleased to see Kass and listen to his tunes around the lands, it was a familiar constant to look forward to in all the constant struggle. So he encouraged it, and Kass went on, "This lofty location is the perfect stage to sing this special song... It takes place one hundred years ago, at Hyrule Castle... Yes, the very castle over yonder. It's about the magnificent inauguration of the Chosen Champions. If you would, please listen to this song... The Champions Ballad."

He began to play and sing, and oh gods that tune, it took him back... Far, far back... To that pompous ceremony so many years ago, with the king 'officially' putting all the kingdom's problems on Zelda's back and tasking her with leading the chosen Champions to their 'fateful' tasks... And then afterwards, to when Daruk was stretching and Revali preening, and Zelda was showing the sheikah slate to Urbosa and MIpha... She told them about it's ability to create true-to-life images, and Mipha specially requested that they take one together... So they had gotten Purah to hold the camera for them, and then all squished together... Only to have Daruk proceed to give them all a great big hug at the last second, which caused Mipha and Revali to fall forward with a squeak and a squawk, and Zelda and Link to get sandwiched together in the middle with comically surprised faces... Urbosa, naturally, was the only one who looked good no matter what, and Daruk grinned with pride just behind her...

That old image faded at last with the memory, and he was back along with Kass at the Plateau once more... Kass addressed him after the completion of the Ballad, "After this ceremony, they would all forever be known as Champions. My teacher always advised me to write songs that transport the listener to the moment in time you're singing of. Now... I feel I finally understand what he meant... And the true power of music. By the way... I found this when I was looking through my teacher's notes. I was thinking... You should be the one to keep it. Your courageous heart reminds me of the indominable spirit of the Champions. I know you'll treasure it."

The paper he was pulling out of the journal in his hand, and unfolding for him to see... No way... How had something so fragile survived this long, and found it's way back to him now...?

Link tucked the picture away extra safe, and walked out with Kass to the edge of the cliff, overlooking the rest of the world before them... Kass didn't say anything about the tears that had suddenly come to Link's eyes. Instead he merely mentioned one more thing, "A final thought... May the souls of the Champions who watch over Hyrule rest in peace."

Link wiped away his tears, looked over to Kass, and smiled with a nod. He knew... Once they finished their business with him, soon, they surely would...

Suddenly, a far-off, muffled voice called to him, growing louder, 'ink... Link...' Zelda! It had been so long since her voice had reached him--! 'Link! I have watched your journey. Every step...' ...Oh boy. That had implications. But he was NOT gonna think about that right away... 'You have overcome every challenge with great courage. You have done all that you must to survive and help others along the way, and I am nothing but proud. Find the Sword of Legend now, Link. Once you have that, then I am certain with the strength you have attained, you will defeat the Calamity Ganon. Truly... So please Link... Don't worry about anything. Just keep your courage strong, and bring me back home... I know there's not much left of it... But we'll start over and build something new... Together... Soon...'

He nodded to the wind that passed those words through his mind, the knowledge sealed in his heart and soul. 

He wanted to try the mechanical horse right away, but he also didn't want to take the chance that the picture might get rained on or torn in an enemy attack, and besides that, he was dead exhausted, driving anything was a stupid idea right now. So he quickly warped back to Hateno, went home for the night, crafted a frame for the photo and then put it just to the side of his bed, over the rest of the little pictures he had framed on the chest of drawers. 

After that he sighed with accomplishment, and went to the table for a meal. He felt he deserved a treat after everything he'd just been through, so he baked himself an apple pie and proceeded to eat almost the whole thing all to himself. He set aside just one slice for the next morning's breakfast though, telling himself not to be such a glutton anymore, since Zelda didn't care for bad table manners, and she was going to be back again soon... He went to bed that night with a smile on his face, and took a very long sleep before he woke up again.

The next morning he went out to the back where his bathroom/shed was, lighting up the fire for a hot bath. He'd been washing at the cold-as-ice rivers for too long, so he really enjoyed soaking his skin and muscles deep in the heated water before putting his gear back on and, with one last salute to the photo on the wall, he headed outside and promptly took out his hard earned prize...

Holy goddesses on high what a beauty... It was like something only a smarter version of himself could have come up with in his dreams... It was so perfect... He always loved horses more than most other animals, nothing felt as freeing as riding a good, strong, fast and courageous horse through the plains, at one with the wind for at least a few moments at a time. Though now that he had the paraglider he could feel that in a different way, he still missed how he used to ride horses next to Zelda. Since waking up a hundred years later, he HAD tamed a few horses (including a rare white horse that just had to be a descendant of Zelda's, and a magnificently monstrous red-maned beast that he couldn't help but challenge himself to try to tame, but lord knows how the stable he left it with was handling him now that he thought about it, oops...) and left them with a few stables, but he rarely actually took them out. He had experienced the heartbreak of losing one to an unexpected Guardian that the poor brown-and-white spotted beast hadn't been fast enough to outrun, Link barely got away with his life then too...

After gaining Revali's Gale, Link decided it was better to just rely on that and not put the poor horse's lives at risk. But now he had THIS...

...How the heck did he even work it though.

After poking and prodding the whole thing all over, he finally found some instructions pictured under the seat. It instructed him that the most efficient fuel was Guardian parts, but that in a pinch monster bones and some other parts could also be converted into fuel, albeit a cruder and less efficient kind. 

Okay, so he got out a handful of ancient screws, he had a ton of those on hand, and threw them into the tank. The guage then indicated it was at full power, so Link hopped a leg over, started it up and... OH MAN THAT WAS COOL... The engine was practically purring, ready to go even after all these years, just like a champ~

And then when it WENT--! SO SMOOTH! Nothing like riding a horse at all really, no clopping of hooves, no having to soothe the beast or strain to get it to go the direction you were trying for, and well to be frank? The pressure on the groin was BLISSFULLY lessened...

He had to refuel with more parts every few dozen miles or so but overall it was AMAZING. It was WAY faster, you still got to feed the horsey just in a weirder way, and there was no chance of watching your friend die! 

Riding around on a miniature mechanical beast and watching everyone he passed stare at him like he was the coolest person in the world was great for a day or so, but then he figured he should get back to the real mission, and warped the rest of the way back to the Woodland Tower, where he once again flew down to the entrance of the Lost Woods. But this time, he had a whole new approach to tackling it...

It was called The 'FUCK YOU. I'M NOT EVEN TRYING TO FIND A PATH ANYMORE. JUST GET THE FUCK OUT OF MY WAY BECAUSE I'VE BEEN THROUGH ENOUGH SHIT AND I'M NOT TAKING ANYMORE, ESPECIALLY NOT FROM SOME GODDAMN TREES!!' Approach, and fifteen minutes into adopting it, stomping through the forest with his torch and a fire in his eyes to boot, he somehow came across a clearing he'd never managed to spot before, not even after being lost in these woods for hours at a time. 

Following it, he was beyond amazed to find himself walking into a dense growth of emerald-green trees, with one absolute giant in the center. All kinds of Koroks were standing around, along with their giant radish-looking big brother LInk had seen a few years ago. They all greeted and welcomed him, showing him to a special little inn they had apparently made just for him that had been waiting for years. Even though he wasn't that tired he couldn't help but lay down for a short nap at their insistance, thinking it was the cutest damn thing ever...

After that he went out to inspect the sword of legend, which stood in the middle of the pedastal, looking... Kind of ordinary, actually. He'd seen way more ornate swords in his life, but then none of them had ever been hidden alone in the middle of haunted wood, and placed in the midst of a sacred pedastel. All of THAT made it seem a little more special-looking, but the sword itself? It actually looked kinda dumb... The things on the side reminded him of keese wings, what the heck...? Urbosa's sword looked cooler than that, why couldn't the sword of legend have been a scimitar...

But, eh! If that's what he needed to get Zelda back, let's just snatch this thing up, and--

Putting his palms around the hilt, he pulled good and hard... And harder... And HARDER... FUCK THAT WAS IN THERE GOOD...

He was starting to feel his strength slowly sap from him the harder he pulled... But then, after what the One Hit Obliterator had put him through? This was nothing, you're gonna have to literally put me at death's door before I tap out you ugly old sword -- COME ON! TIME FOR YOU TO STOP NAPPING AND HELP ME GO SAVE ZELDAAAAAAAA--!

SHINK!

Link nearly lost his footing, but then pulled the sword out and upwards, his grip on the hilt firm. Aaah... Hello again, ugly old friend~ Lets get the hell out of this forest and finally save our pretty old friend~

After exiting the forest with nothing but relief, Link headed down to the Woodland Stable for just one more long rest before taking on the castle. He had to be extra-EXTRA smart and careful about this one, more than any fight he'd ever faced before... So he stayed just a few extra days at the stable this time, planning how to get in through every entrance in the castle he knew up, and trying to remember any others he might have forgotten. Because he couldn't just get in, get Zelda, and get out... What point would there be in THAT, after all? Free Zelda from Ganon, only to have her turn a corner and get hit in the face with a sword from a moblin? Yeah, no. If he was going to do this he was going to do it right, and that meant every beast and guardian on the WHOLE damn castle GROUNDS had to be eliminated before the princess could safely be... Well, saved.

He was just finishing up his plans and getting ready to select his best weapons to take with him, when to his surprise, a small group of people arrived at the Woodland Stable, just to see him.

Chief among them was none other than Sidon, flashing him a big bright grin, as well as Teba, Beedle, and a couple of Gorons and Gerudo guards.

The Gerudo bowed on one knee to him and the Gorons saluted with their big rocky fists. Teba then spoke up for the group, "My arm healed up well... So I decided not to just perch around, but try to do something to help. I heard a few months ago that you were seen coming and going from this stable a lot. I figured you were getting ready to take on the nearby castle soon... So I went flying around and asking if anyone had anything that could help you."

Sidon took over then, clapping the bird-man on the back. "A fine idea indeed, I thought! And so I came to offer my assistance in the battle too!"

Getting up from their bows, the Gerudo crossed their fists over their hearts. "Sir Link! Lady Riju regrets that she could not see you off in person, but she sent us to offer whatever aid we could!"

The Gorons added, "Same here, brother! Yunobo says he knows you can do it, but he sent us to help if you need it too!" 

"And Beedle just figured he should get one more sale out of his best customer before he finally goes and gets himself killed!" ...Jerk. But he was a practical jerk, and he brought plenty of much-needed arrows, so, forgiven... 

Link bowed his head in thanks to the group. As tempting as it was to allow their help in the face of all he was up against... He knew he had to face it alone. "Thanks you guys... Really, thank you, more than I could ever say... But I have to face this battle alone. I couldn't stand to see any of you get hurt, and it would cause me to worry about your safety... I know it's hard for you guys to wait out here and have to worry about me too, but I'm confident that I can do this... You see, Princess Zelda's voice reached me not long ago, and told me I was finally strong enough to face him. I believe in her completely, so if she believes in me, I must be ready..."

Sidon was the first to come forward, snatching up his hand in both of his. "LINK! My most amazing friend!! I understand! I won't worry you, I'll go back home and wait for you there! Because I believe in you, and I believe in the word of your princess! If she says you can do it, then you don't need me to tell you that you surely can! BUT I WILL ANYWAYS, BECAUSE YOU ARE AMAZING!! GO FOR IT, MY MOST COURAGEOUS BEST FRIEND!!"

Teba and the others blinked at him slowly. The white-feathered Rito finally coughed, "Yes... Well, very well Link. We understand how you feel you must proceed. Just be careful! You've done so much for all of us, so it IS hard to watch you go off alone... But I will strive to have the confidence that Prince Sidon apparently has... I've gone my whole life living in this world controlled by Ganon... I look forward to knowing what living in a world without him is like! So go on, Link... Do us that one last big favor, won't you?"

Link nodded back to them all, feeling choked up. He accepted their gifts to aid in the fight, taking the strongest weapons from all of the tribes and races and incorporating them into his equipment. By the time he was ready to go, he had several bows on him, several swords, scimitars, spears and crushers, the finest and most durable shields, and over a hundred of every kind of arrow, including precious ancient arrows, which he'd stocked up on at Robbie's the last time he'd seen him, as well as an ancient bow, sword and shield, and an ancient armor set to match the diamond circlet Paya had gifted to him. The confidence was the most important thing of course, but admittedly... Being armed to the fucking teeth did NOT hurt~

The next morning, he waved everyone off at the stable. "I'll definitely see you all again someday... Until then, thank you..." And with that, and all their wishes for success urging him on, he finally left, heading directly to the castle...

Now. If he was going to do this as thoroughly as he wanted to, he had to do it smart. He had to do it sneaky. Most of the time he preferred to just take on his enemies head-on, because if you couldn't overpower your foe, you weren't truly strong enough to defeat them, and therefore if another foe ever snuck up on you, you'd stand no chance. Link preferred to always take the next biggest challenge, but there were some rare times in his life when it was necessary to play things smart, when it was clear there was too many enemies to take on alone at once. And yeah, a whole CASTLE full of enemies, the biggest stronghold in all the lands, with the most concentrated evil... 

He was just gonna come in through the back... At least at first. There was a 'secret' entrance around the back of the castle from what he'd heard from treasure seekers and then later remembered, it was rarely used to transport sensitive goods that the Royal Family didn't feel comfortable accepting through the front gate. However, there was also a secret escape passage for the Royal Family leading from the Royal Library at that spot, he'd just remembered that while doing his planning at the stable. That would be the smartest place to start...

So he traveled out to the huge glowing spire directly behind the castle, and at that vantage point he used the paraglider out to the nearest cliff. From there he paraglided again to the next, and then crept the rest of the way in, not sure how many enemies to expect, but he already saw at least one Lizalfo, and he didn't want it alerting the others, so he snuck up on it and then took it out quickly and sneakily. Then he dispatched of the others in just the same way -- Voila, docks secured!

So way at the top of the whole cavern there was a shrine, easy enough to take out the ancient tough guy inside of it without even needing to use an ancient arrow, just a shield deflect and a broken royal spear. Then he moved on up the long stairway, which he knew to be connected at the top to the Royal Library...

There was a metal bookcase at the top, cleared with his magnesis powers. Inside there was a small group of Lizalfos. which he easily dispatched of before they got too loud. Then he decided... What the hell, since he'd remembered how to read now, why not do a little light browsing?

The first thing of interest he noticed was an open book, which contained the recipe for Zelda's favorite fruit-flavorite cakes and pies. But he already had Canolo waiting to take care of that, so he left it... Instead he moved on, glancing over and quickly moving past a recipe for monster cake, and finally coming to find a hidden room way in the back of the library, behind another metal bookcase... The King's Study...

It was a private place that Link knew about but had never entered, and for a moment thought not to enter, except... It seemed to beckon him for some reason. Maybe there was something important in there, he reasoned, so he moved the metal bookcase and hidden entrance and went inside... Another batch of hundred-year old books lied inside, and an old shield... But for some reason, a single open book on the desk made him give pause, and after blowing away some dust, he began to read it's contents...

It was the King's personal journal... It talked of his initial love and pride for his newborn daughter, of giving her the traditional namesake. Then of his growing apprehension of the reports around him turning into a deep inner terror and looming dread that the king could ultimately do nothing to stop no matter how much he tried. Oh but he tried... He destroyed himself and everything around him trying.... Especially after the death of his queen. Half his spirit must have left with her, because he was obviously not the same after...

He spoke of Zelda not crying... Link knew better. She didn't cry around HIM. Or anyone else. Wouldn't allow herself to cry until she was alone, and 'safe'. He knew because he'd been just like that after his mother died too... Trying so hard to be strong for his father and sister... He only cried when he was finally alone...

He assumed it was strength that caused her to be so silent in the storm of emotions that was her mother's passing. Foolishly, the king added to her stress and grief by only adding more and more grave tasks and responsibilities onto her shoulders. It was necessary. But it wasn't right. He tried to allieviate his own shame by reasoning and rationalizing, claiming he'd be easier on her if he could be, but to the end, he never was... He always acted as the king first and the father second. And true, no one could blame him for being the king... But Link would definitely blame him for the tears that Zelda had finally let him see her cry...

She couldn't even do anything fun, even a moment to spare for anything she liked or wanted to do was too much. She was exhausted. Everything had been taken from her, everyone around just kept demanding more and more and she had no idea what to do to give them what they wanted of her. At least Paya knew what was expected of her, even if it was harder than almost anything for her. But Zelda was trapped trying so hard to appease a mystery that never stopped not making sense no matter what kind of logic or prayer she tried to apply to it...

Hell, not only did it not make sense, then her father and other know-nothings started ridiculing her for not being able to figure it all out, as if THEY could... Damn them all... 

Finally the king spoke kindly of her... Of regretting at least a little all the harshness he imposed on her, of considering that maybe letting her enjoy her hobbies could give her the answers that prayers had remained silent to... It was his last entry...

After a few moments of thought, Link silently sealed the King's journal away in the Sheikah slate's inner library of stored items... The words inside might be painful, but Zelda might like to read them later, and if this library ended up collapsing later somehow, Link hoped that wasn't the case but if he could only take one thing from here (and that was more or less the case as the sheikah slate couldn't take the whole library and he didn't have time to pick and choose anyways) he was sure that Zelda would want him to take this...

At the opposite end of the library was another secret passage outside at the bottom, and at the top of the stairs and around the gross stinging glops of malice, was what Link recognized as a large old Reading Room where scholars used to take the books to study. But since then all the furniture had been smashed into a pile, and all the paintings of the royal family on display had their images scratched out completely... This was the case of every painting in every corridor and room in the whole castle... All memory of Zelda's entire family, gone...

He came to a long and dimly lit corridor, which he careful crossed until he came to a shut set of doors. He very slowly and quietly opened it to come to a familiar sight, some soldiers quarters. He had to climb a bit here because some of the stairs were no longer... There. But after doing, and traveling though a few more stone corridors that used to house bored knights after training, he came to a long royal corridor. But just across the hall in front of him was another familiar room. The Dining Hall.

Which was currently infested with Moblins, and no, that just wouldn't do at all! Link did a few mad-dashes across the room to seperate them, and the slaughtered them one by one afterwards. When they were finally dead, Link ate their lunches too -- Because hey, waste not, want not, right? Monsters might not be good chefs but they they could at least roast a mushroom or melon...

Going back into the corridor he had just left, Link traveled down it and eventually found himself in the Observation Room, which like it sounded was a large room with a balcony in the front of the castle which allowed the king and other high status people see who was coming into the castle from the front gate at a vantage point. 

It was also a fantastic vantage poing to use Revali's gale several times and take out almost every Guardian in sight for the next hour or so, until the entire front of Hyrule Castle's grounds were completely Guardian-free. After that he settled back down into the Observation Room and took a breather on a nearby couch. 

...Which promptly fell apart under him in just a few minutes due to it's age and disrepair... Well then. Break over, he guessed...

There was another doorway but it was sealed with malice, so he used the paraglider to take him out of the Observation room and glide down to the pathway, where he traveled up into the guard's entrance and through several more stone corridors and up some stairs, to ANOTHER long corridor. For most this would seem like a maze... But then the more Link traveled it... The more familiar it seemed. He knew down one way would lead to some more guard's chambers and training areas, deeper down the dungeons. He sweeped these areas quickly just to rid them of the pests, but then he quickly returned to that corridor, to a room in particular that had once held a large and impressive spiral staircase... It was almost completely destroyed at the bottom, but fortunately Link was still able to climb his way over the rubble and then up to the top. 

Things were becoming more and more familiar... He used Revali's Gale twice and, after taking out a few more flying Guardians on the way, he found himself in the Princess' Study... Her Research Notes detailed extensively how very much she had worked to try and find the elusive way to solve everyone's problems despite their insistence that she didn't try hard enough, so naturally he thought to take that into the Sheikah slate as well. 

After crossing the bridge (and remembering the almost unbearably painful time in detail that the king had forbid her beloved ancient studies upon it...) and hopping into a hole in the floor he found himself in the Princess' Personal Chambers. And... WAS THAT A MOBLIN SLEEPING ON THE REMNANTS OF WHAT USED TO BE HER BED??! OH HELL NO--!

Pissed into a brief moment of violence, Link slaughtered the Moblin with a series of ice and electric arrows until it finally fell in a heap of groans, and then he noticed there was another suspicious book sitting nearby on an old tattered desk, cove, red in cobwebs. It was a miracle it was still there despite being exposed to the elements for a hundred years, the wall next to it was wide open and almost everything in the room was at least slightly damp, but that open book was dry... That obviously didn't seem natural, so Link decided to read. It was in fact, Zelda's Diary...

The research notes had detailed all her efforts to stop the calamity, but her diary gave voice and sight to her fears... And her apparent initial dissatisfaction whim him as her appointed knight. No doubt, he remembered her first cold stares at him all too well now...

What he didn't remember though, what he did not realize at the time... Was that it was because she was so nervous with the way he never talked around her. But had had been too nervous TO talk to her! It had made her imagination run wild trying to guess at him though, and he had to admit that must have beens stressful... She worried what he thought of her because EVERYONE had something to think about her... But truthfully he had always been worrying about what she thought of HIM!

She got the completely wrong idea, thinking that he must despite her, and he hated himself for making her feel that way... If he had only known... She confessed to yelling at him out of anger, and feeling guilty about it... He remembered that, and the confusion... But it made a lot more sense now... 

She softened up to him after he saved her from the Yiga though, he was glad to read that, and her willingness to talk with him again... She started to talk about what a gluttonous eater he was, but thankfully it was in jest. She asked him about why he was so quiet, and he told her. She apparently had understood his reasons all too well... She had wanted to open up to him more... But she never had the time. Her Father was always on her case... Nothing worked for her, failure surrounded her always... So much frustration and grief...

The last pages of her diary spoke of how she had wanted to speak to her father again, just like he had wanted to for her... Of her premonition that something terrible was soon to occur... And then her handwriting ended there.

He put her diary away with the other important books, and set off once more... He needed more than ever to see her again, to finally make everything right for her, for once and for all... And he'd literally be damned if it wasn't going to be TODAY!!

Another Gale and a handful of Guardians defeated later and he was standing at the entrance of the Sanctum... He just knew... He could just feel it... This was where the final battle was to begin...

Past a long row of tall colemns, standing like watchers of his fate, he crossed passed them looming over him and into the main room beyond... 

Windows taller than two Zora standing together loomed over him, letting the glow of the sunset flow into the room. The middle window had a triforce right in the middle of it, as if the symbol of his faith was watching him now, observing his fate. The floor below him was like a giant medaliion, and every stop upon it filled him with apprehension and dread, as he stared up at the pulsing purplish sack of malice above him...

Slowly, her voice drowned out the beat of the evil heart above... The voice he longed to hear in person at last. Her voice called out to him, muffled at first but growing louder, stronger, more strained and desperate... "...ink... Link... Link! I'm sorry... But my power... Isn't strong enough anymore... I can't hold him...!"

He knew. She had already been holding on so long... Now the rest was finally up to him.

To his shock but not his surprised, the enemy wasted not a single second of it;s freedom before shooting out a deadly later beam, swinging it wildly around the huge room, trying to hit him, but every slice managed to miss, thankfully...

Or... Did it...? Link just barely noticed the deep laser-cuts in the wall and stone floor around and under him... Just barely had to opportunity to look up and see the pulsing egg of malice drop down onto the cracked floor before him, completely collapsing it under him and causing both of them to fall down, down, DOWN...

The collossal creature slammed on the floor below first, his mass and weight making his fall much faster and harder. Link on the other hand had been smart enough to pull out his paraglider the second he felt his feet falling, and flowed much more slowly and safely down to the ground in front of the monster. Well, safe for now... Until the age-old scourge of the castle turned around, focused his huge, enraged face on him... He first let out a roaring shriek, and then as he settled, his chest rumbled with a deep, purposeful growl as he stared down his old foe...

But it wasn't the only one who was prepared... And neither was Link. Suddenly in his mind's eye Link could see them, standing proud on top of their Divine Beasts, Champions once more, and ready to prove it... First was Revali, who declared confidently from his flying beast, "Now my moment has finally come... Brace yourself Ganon, for the sting of my revenge!"

From far beyond where he could ever console her again, Mipha's voice called out to encourage him here and now, in his most desperate moment. She wanted to see him again more than anything, but she prayed it would still be a long, long time until then... "This will be our final opportunity... We will NOT fail!" She promised, not just Link, but herself...

Daruk bellowed deep and proud from the mountains, slamming his fists together so hard you could hear it before the canon went off, "Let's go, little guy! NOW! OPEN UP WIDE, GANON!"

Urbose, he knew, would be standing tall and proud atop her beast, steeling eyes of ice and fire down upon the Calamity... "A hundred years in the making..." They had all been waiting for this... But Urbosa... This was especially personal for her. She hadn't just been waiting for this, she'd been expecting it... But she also knew better than anyone just what was at stake. "Hold on, Princess. Our moment has arrived!"

From the four corners of the world, deadly powerful beams of divine light shot forth through the sky, invading every open space of the castle, and pummeling down on the Calamity it found waiting within. Link stood just outside the radius of the beams while they assaulted the monster hundreds more times than he could count in just a matter of seconds. 

The intensely powerful shot left the creature crumbled on the ground for several seconds, but Link knew better, and sure enough in less than a minute it was slowly getting back up again... That shot had been an immense help, they probably took him down to half his strength with that... But the rest, now, was up to him...

Enraged at the pain the monster straightened back up and let out an enormous cry of anguish and murderous intent. It would kill this insect that had dared to defy him, and then it would kill everything else the world over...

Link withdrew the Master Sword, his eyes focused on his foe... And the battle was on.

A stinger shot out first, trying to stab him right through the heart. As if it would be that easy. He quickly dodged that first with a flip, and as the other clawed appendage came to skewer him he quickly threw up Daruk's protection, stopping the blow right in it's track. While the beast was off gaurd he sprinted in close, slashing with his holy sword right across his face. It was like trying to slash a mask of stone... But there was cracks between the armor plating the beast, spots where malice dripped and oozed through... Link aimed to slice there, and he found the beast crying out in a more pained than angered way... 

He also managed to get in a few good shots with ancient arrows, which slowly but surely wore down the monster... Until it suddenly roared in a desperate and terrifying anger, and covered itself in a golden glowing armor... That might be a problem...

And that extra big giant crushing weapon it was about to swing down on his head was DEFINITELY gonna be a problem... So he quickly flung himself to the side to dodge it, then rolled in with his opportunity from another angle to strike again, and again, and again... 

But then that familiar old laser started focusing between his eyes... Ugh, of course... First he used Revali's Gale at just the right moment to shoot up and evade it, then after hitting it with a few ancient arrows on the way down, he swung his sword around and unleashed Urbosa's Fury on the monster, bringing it down temporary from the stunning electrical shock. 

He made a run to strike while he thought his foe was weakened, but he was surprised by a sudden spear thrown at him too close to fully dodge, it ripped a large hole in his side, and he cursed, feeling himself bleeding too fast from it -- Except then the blood suddenly receeded, and he was surrounded by an aquar glow that healed his wounds instantly. He sighed with relief and thanked Mipha for looking out for him, and she replied gracefully as ever, "My pleasure..."

Wising up, he threw a sword from afar this time, and when it was stunned with it's face turned, he rushed in again and sliced it several times across the body.

It let out a terrible shriek then, but Link knew better than to believe it was done for just yet. Malice was spurting, streaming out of his body in several spots, but it was also pooling and reforming around him... He wasn't dying, he was... Changing...

Malice flew past him, making him need to cover his face and eyes, but then it began to flow up and out of the hole in the ceiling leading from the castle... A golden glowing light suddenly sprang up before his eyes in the middle of the room, beckoning him, so he went towards it. It was Zelda's holy light... She wasn't back, not yet, but her power was strengthening as Ganon's weakened... 

Enveloping him in the golden light, his vision faded into whiteness for a brief moment before materializing him again on the fields of Hyrule, just beyond the castle. He could feel the beast behind him even before Zelda warned of him by name, "Ganon... Ganon..."

He looked over his shoulder apprehensively... There was one of his horses behind him, the biggest, the Giant horse... The horse that was fabled to be a descendant of Ganon's steed... Zelda had a sense of humor bringing that horse here to help him now. As if testing any last shred of Ganon's humanity -- Would you slay your own noble steed?

But from the way the creature continued to shriek, from the way it began to morph into a wilder and wilder state... It was clear there was nothing left now but the monster. Zelda relayed this obvious fact onto him as he braced himself and climbed up on top of the horse to prepare for what was to come... "Ganon was born of a dark past... He is a pure embodiment of the ancient evil that is reborn time and time again... But now... He has given up on reincarnation and has assumed his pure, enraged form..." Though obvious at first Link realized with dawning apprehension what Zelda was trying to tell him, was just realizing with horror herself... "Link! If this thing is set free upon our world, the destruction will be unlike anything ever seen before...!"

The demon-beast to end all beasts reigned up and then shook the ground for miles upon landing down again. Link's steed, giant though it was, was almost spooked by that and reigned up too, but thankfully Zelda had picked the perfect partner to aid him in this battle. No other horse would have the power or the courage to take on this battle, no other horse would be fast enough to outrun those house-sized hooves... And even still Link said a little prayer to Malanya to aid them...

Zelda apparently didn't think that would be quite enough, and she offered him one last blessing... A golden glowing bow that floated down to him from the sky, as if birthed by the sun, while Zelda told him, "I entrust you with the Bow of Light -- A powerful weapon in the face of evil. Link... You may not have yet fully recovered all of your memories... But courage need not be remembered... For it is never forgotten."

He nodded, and he took the bow from atop the horse, loading it with the last of his ancient arrows and riding off around the great beast, circling it. Zelda informed him that he couldn't just get through to the malice, that he would have to wait for him to show glowing weak points, and to strike there. He did everything exactly as she told him, once again her appointed knight following her every order, protecting her with his life. Even though his life was in constant danger, nothing had ever felt so amazing in the last few years as this moment, even as his giant steed just barely missed being blasted by the dark beast, Link simply laughed in the face of death itself and shot another arrow into his sides.

He could feel Zelda's hope and confidence surging as he his his mark perfectly time and time again, "It's working! We're so close!" She encouraged him, her voice getting louder and nearer with every hit, until, as he turned the steed around and came face to face with the beast again, she cried out to alert him, "Link! Look up there!" She was referring to a disgusting giant eye of malice that had suddenly appeared in the middle of Ganon's forehead, and she explained, semi-needlessly as he was already getting an ancient arrow ready and aiming right at it, "That's the very core of Ganon's being! Do what you must, Link!"

Link jumped off the horse then, letting it run free into the wild while he took out a bow mid-air and then let the final arrow fly, right into the evil eye... 

As soon as the eye was hit a brilliantly blinding white light spread across the entire land for a single terrifyingly unsure second, but then, from the eye of the beast came the source of that light, Zelda herself, like a glorious golden goddess, she floated away from the beast, who looked up at his lost prize in shock and disbelief for a moment. Like a star, she levitated before him, completely serene and unbothered by the enormous monster before her, who fell as she shined ever brighter at him.

In a rage, the Calamity began to ascend into the dusty-grey air and sky like a plume of demonic smoke and malice, roaring in the atmosphere above and around Zelda, trying to terrify and intimidate her, but she kept her perfect calm, responding to none of it except to hold her hand up, shining her light right into it's face as it charged head on into her. But her light put up a wall around her, shining with the emblem of the Triforce, expanding and forcing the demonic cloud to disappate as the light filled up the sky, until suddenly, shockingly, all that light and shadow-demon darkness that threatened to consume everything together was sucked into an impossibly small oblivion. Just as quickly as that, it was gone...

It took just as many seconds for all the malice-colors that were bleeding through the sky to ebb away, revealing the natural, lawful blue beneath, Zelda, robed in flawless white, his savoir, stood before the sky as if returned to how it should be... Even if nothing around her was... 

Despite how bone tired he was, he immediately began to move towards her... She didn't immediately turn to him, still watching the sky, but she began to speak... And it was amazing, just hearing that voice outside of his own mind, spoken with her own voice again... "I've been keeping watch over you all this time..." Well... Judging by how calmly she said that, he had to assume that mean despite everything she had seen, the two of them were still alright... "I've witnessed your struggles to return to us, as well as your trials in battle... I always thought--No, I always believed... That you would find a way to defeat Ganon." 

Finally there she turned to face him, locked eyes with him as she declared, "I never lost faith in you over these many years. Never. No matter what... Thank you, Link... The Hero of Hyrule." She proclaimed, and with that, Link's heart lifted. Despite everything, he was still her hero... Despite everything, they'd managed to secure victory... Despite all the costs, and the long, long wait the war had imposed...

Knowing better than anyone the true cost, Zelda had to ask him then, for it was the only think she truly cared about, "May I ask... Do you really remember me?"

Link stepped forward, finally feeling free enough to stand before her. Still though... Something made his feet, and his heart, feel heavy... "Even when I didn't immediately remember anything, I promise I never truly forgot... Especially not you... But... I... I'm so sorry... For taking so long, for--" Oh there was so, SO many things to apologize to her for--

Except she interrupted him there, stating calmly and surely back, "I'm so sorry too... For everything..."

He understood then, and dropped it on the spot. The more he blamed himself, for anything, the more she too would have to accept blame. They had to just forgive themselves together. 

However, as if knowing that they themselves were the greatest sources of Link and Zelda's guilt, the spirits of their friends and the former Champions, and the spirit of the King, Zelda's father, suddenly appeared at the top of the castle, at the now freed Sanctum... Their spirits stared down at them with pride and gratitude, and then in just another instant, they faded away, gone again and likely this time for good... 

Link and Zelda stared on at the spot where they were for a few more seconds, then turned to leave. The sun was rising behind the castle, shining down on them now... Finally, at last, they left the castle, together...

Both of them silently holding hands, they walked through the gates, through the castle town ruins, which were still indeed ruined, but at least now free of malice. Walking out of the town altogether, Zelda stared forward past the ruins of the Sacred Grounds, then turned her head off to left, mentioning to Link, "The Royal Applean Forest has been growing untamed for a very long time... Those apples sound absolutely delicious to me right now. Will you take me there, Link...?"

He'd take her anywhere. He blushed at the thought and nodded, but... He had to stall just long enough to get another good look at her face. Her face, really and truly her, in the flesh, once again after so, so long... Smiling at him... He reached out and tucked a strand of hair behind her ear, smiling back at her...

...And then suddenly a red laser dot started focusing on her forehead...

Link sighed, "Oops. Looks like I missed one. Hold on, princess..."

Using Revali's Gale to get a vantage point in the sky and find the offender, Link shot it with an ancient arrow before it could blow and then flew gracefully back down next to Zelda. "Right! Apples! Sounds great! Let's go!"

Zelda smiled back and nodded, slipping her hand back into his as they headed back down the old dusty path again. She mentioned, "You know... After everything we've been through together... And well, I know I'm still a princess, I suppose, but, well... You can just call me Zelda, if you'd like, Link... I'd like it better if you did..."

He stared back at her, quickly nodding, and remembering... Those old hurtful words 'heir to a throne of nothing'... She probably didn't want to remember it through that old title. She just wanted to be the person she really was. The person no one had really yet allowed her to be...

"Of course, Zelda." He paused briefly, then added, raising his voice just a bit, "Welcome home again..."

She squeezed his hand. They both headed out across the fields together, to the rather large forest of almost all apple trees that used to be for the Royal Family only, but had been guarded dutifully anyways from the hungry public by Guardians on one side, and a Hinox on the other right next to the river. Link had felled the Hinox long ago, and now the last of the Guardians were gone. Link would be happy to tell the nearest stables that they could keep apple pie on the menu for good now, but not until after he and his newly reunited and very hungry lady-friend had their fill first...

Speaking of his lady-friend, his very best friend, his reason, his mission... She stopped and stared at the first big red apple from the first tree they came across, the first apple hanging low from it's size and weight, low enough for her to simply reach up and grab... Then she stared at that apple in her hands, as if it was shimmering dragon scale or a shining star fragment... And she began to explain, forcing herself not to bite it yet, but instead starting by just sniffing it instead. Breathing in its very essence. "Oh my gods... Link... Listen..." To her sniffing? She went on with doing it for quite a while... She was really fascinated with smelling that apple... But then she finally explained, "My body... Was trapped within that beast... But my spirit roamed free... I flew over all these lands... I blessed them... I blessed these very trees, and all the other trees and plants and animals, and the people, all of them, I blessed them all to keep them as safe as I could... I did everything I could to keep the evil from spreading, and to keep the good things in the world growing... My mind's eye could see all the beauty around me, all of it... And I could sometimes hear echoes of the old songs of nature, and sometimes your voice... But I could never reach out and touch anything, Link... I could never..." She took in another long, deep whiff. "SMELL, or TASTE them...! Oh goddesses... I've been wanting to do this again more than anything...!"

If there was a worm in that big, juicy apple Zelda had picked... It wouldn't have stood a chance. She ate it so fast it was almost alarming, and as soon as it was gone, the juice dripping down the corner of her lips, she immediately stared at the tree in front of her, at the next apple just a little higher up... And even in that sacred dress, she threw caution to the find and started to climb the tree for another helping.

Doing so was causing her skirt to hike up a bit immodestly, but she didn't seem to care. Link didn't really either deep down, but old habits were hard to kill, and he quickly turned his head, jogging behind a nearby thicker tree and beginning to change into something more comfortable than the ancient armor he still had on. Putting those heavier pieces away, he changed into a much simpler pair of trousers, and the old Champion's tunic from their past. That was better... Finally, he tucked Paya's diamond circlet away and ruffled up his hair, then stepped back out to rejoin her.

He came back to find her surrounded by another four apple cores by the time he was done. Coming over to her side, he found that the only reason she wasn't climbing for a fifth apple was because her eyes were now focused on a much different and more succulent treat... A ways away, grunting as it ate a few fallen apples from another free, was a boar that hadn't yet noticed them... Zelda silently looked back at Link and then at the boar, then back at Link again, and licked her lips with an expectant and pleading smile. He winked back at her and then withdrew his bow and arrow, hitting their boar seconds later right between the eyes, just like he'd done with the much bigger version of the beast earlier~

Well, dinner wasn't going to skin or roast itself. Link set to doing that job, and Zelda, to be helpful while he did that, went around the rest of the forest by herself gathering more apples, as well as mushrooms, truffles, radishes, some eggs and some herbs she found growing around the place. By the time she brought it back to the fire Link had the meat cooking, and Zelda began to clean the dirt off the mushrooms... Occasionally popping one into her mouth, too.

"Hmm..." Link wondered, cleaning his meat-cutting blade after preparing the boars flesh into chunks and steaks. and then washing up at the nearby river. "Salted chops, a sauteed shroom omelet, roasted radishes and truffles and a crude apple cake for dessert... Sound good, Princess? I mean... Zelda?" Saying it to her face might take a few times to get used to...

She nodded back enthusiastically. "That sounds unbelievably good to me right now... Almost anything does, but especially something cooked. I'm sorry for calling you a glutton in my diary, by the way..." She apparently saw him reading that but didn't mind. "I didn't understand how hungry most people could really be. I always either had more than enough food laid out for me or prepared for me to take along with me. But now... It's been over a hundred years since anyone offered me anything but prayers..."

Well, that put just a little bit of pressure on Link to cook everything just right and make sure it was the best meal she'd eaten in ages... Except he'd barely flipped the boar chops to cook on the opposite side when Zelda began to hover over the commandeered cooking pot he had stored in the Sheikah Slate for the road, sniffing at the steam from the cooking meats, "Ooh, that smells so amazing...!" Then he started sprinkling sea salt and herbs over the meat, and she looked like she was almost tempted to jump right into the cooking pot to get it... "Oh~! It smells even BETTER now! Is it almost done yet?" She was almost like a kid right now... So undignified... It was adorable~

And it sure brought back memories... Of how he used to beg his mother to give him dinner faster than it was done, back when he was a little kid himself... So he began to sing the little tune his mother use to sing to him then, tossing mushrooms into the salty herby sauce to saute in while he chided her in his sing-song voice, "You gotta wait~ Until I cook it~ You gotta wait~ Until I cook it~ You gotta wait, wait, wait, until I put it on the plate, you gotta wait~ Until I cook it!" He then looked up at Zelda and give her a wink.

Hearing her normally silent, stoic knight bust into that childish little ditty made Zelda fall over into the mossy grass laughing, rolling around so long that the food managed to finish cooking and even cool down before she could stop. Finally wiping at her eyes, she sat up and asked him, "W-What in the world...? Did you just make that up...?"

He shook his head, admitting as he put double portions for her onto a traveling plate, "My mom used to sing it to me when I was a boy... She's been gone since I was a boy... She needed molduga guts to cure a rare illness she inherited, but she was unable to procure them before the disease claimed her. Father fell trying to aid me at the battle for the castle... And my sister Arynya is gone now too, but I am at least glad to report that she apparently lived long and lived well before she left the world. She married, and I managed to briefly meet her husband, at least... He was an adventurer and a generous man. Impa is still alive but very old. She has descendants as well. I'm sure you'll want to visit her sooner than later. But it'll take a while to get there, so lets rest for tonight..." 

He finally finished filling the plate, almost overloading it with well over half the contents of the pot. Even though he'd just stormed a whole castle and defeated a demon-beast god almost entirely by himself, he still only took a modest portion for himself, preferring to watch her enjoying his food instead. Manners completely forgotten, as well as any needless utensils, she used only her fingers to snatch up the steaming steaks of well-cooked meat, stripping it of every morsel she could between the bones. She even ate the fats, which no princess in her family had eaten in MUCH more than a hundred years...

After eating all her vegetables too (there, a good princess would at least do that!) Zelda finally was able to tear herself away from Link's amazing cooking to reply to him from earlier, "Yes, we'll definitely go to her... But something tells me... There's a certain place in Akkala we should visit first... Something tells me we should visit at least a few places, because... Something tells me, deep down where I know I can't deny it, that although we'll have a few years reprieve to rest and prepare... I forsee another trial in our future, Link... More battles... Until then we must tie any loose ends that we must... Until then... We can at the very least breathe and enjoy life for a bit..."

He nodded, then offering up the crude apple cake he had just finished making while picking at his own dinner. "This isn't as good as the cakes made by Canolo in Hateno, but we'll definitely visit her and everybody else there soon too..."

Zelda quickly and gladly snatched the still-warm, sugary, buttery wheat-egg-and-apple pancake he'd made for her and gobbled it down faster than she'd eaten anything else so far. Almost a bit sheepish after realizing how fast it was gone, Zelda joked back, "I foresee myself enjoying that cake just as much, but I'll try to take more time to enjoy it too..."

Their meal completed, the two then accompanied each other to the nearby river to wash the cooking pot and the rest of the dishes, and then their own hands and faces. After that Zelda dried her hands a little carelessly on the sacred dress, which was now partially soiled again anyways. They would have to hope they could find some women's traveling clothes at the nearest stable, but until then, it was now well into the evening, well past dark, and after washing herself in the cold river in that definitely delicate dress, her shivering was obvious....

(( THE FOLLOWING IS A SUMMARY OF THE END OF THIS FIC, JUST NO TIME TO WRITE THIS ALL OUT IN DETAIL RN OR PROLLY EVER, BUT HERE'S THE GENERAL IDEA... ))

OoOoOoOoOoOoOoOoOoO

Okay so yeah after this point obviously Link and Zelda were gonna start putting the moves on each other. More Zelda on Link, as since like it was mentioned she's pretty sensation-starved after finally being free after over 100 years. She starts with that 'Oh so cold~' act and gets Link to start cuddling with her, the cuddling turns to kissing and eventually the kissing turns to Link making dessert of Zelda for hours, until she's barely got time to return the favor before the sun starts dawning. And ofc even though he serviced Zelda like a good knight for hours, it barely takes a few minutes for Zelda to make him just as happy. XD

On a more serious note though, after a short nap, they wake up, finish up most of the boar's bacon for breakfast, and Zelda informs Link of a sort of prophetic vision and guidance she received. She explains that she was advised by the spirits much like Link was, and she was told that, in addition to the battles still to come in the events of the yet unseen BOTW2, she was advised that although she and Link should remain close, that they shouldn't procreate. The spirits told Zelda that both she and Link had other people they were destined to eventually marry in this lifetime, and that a child born between them, especially now, would only be in extreme danger because of the trials they still had to face together. Link says he's fine with this of course, and he is, since he still has to check if he doesn't already have any kids, lmao.

So after that Link shows Zelda the sweet new Master Cycle ride he nearly died several dozen times over and took almost a whole extra year to find before getting her, and she of course is massively stoked and geeks out over it for almost an hour before they can continue. Then Link zooms her on over to the nearest stable, gets her a new set of traveling clothes, announces to the stable-people to start spreading the word that Princess Zelda was back, and then starts zooming off again towards Akkala.

On the road between Akkala and Eldin territory they come across Yunobo, who was heading home to check on his people. They tell him they're on their way to Akkala for a few visits and check-ins, but that after that they intend to visit Impa and Paya not too long after. Yunobo tells them that after he checks on the Gorons, he'll go to Kakariko for a visit and wait for them there.

So Link and Zelda head off again towards Tarrey Town, and when they get there Link is not too surprised but definitely thrilled when he sees a little Gerudo girl toddler playing by the gate... But then he goes back to being surprised when he sees ANOTHER Gerudo girl peek around the corner, playing with the other, along with a few little Rito children too, led by Hunnie, who seems extra happy with all the new little playmates. As they get near the other residents of Tarrey notice them and basically immediate celebration. They don't need to be told who Zelda is, especially not after the light show from the castle, they just welcome her right away, and not long after Link of course asks about the little girls... Rhondson tells 'Uncle Link' that she's so happy to tell him that not long after his last visit, the goddesses blessed her after her long wait not just with one vevi, but two! She was so delighted that she didn't even mind letting Hudson name them, but thankfully he actually picked something nice for each of them.

Link then looks to Hudson for an explanation, and he first points to the girl with green eyes like Rhondson, saying she's Season. He then points to the girl with blue eyes, saying she's Reason. He then jokes, "BECAUSE THEY'RE THE REASON FOR THE SEASON! OHOHOHO~" He will apparently think he's hilarious for this joke for years to come. Nobody tells him otherwise, and nobody mentions that his eyes are brown, either. ;)

After that they have a big potluck dinner for the whole town, and Zelda is presented with her special bowl that's been waiting for her so long they had to wash the dust out. She eats everything just like Link, except for the extra spicy Gerudo firey eggs. That's just a little TOO much sensation. XD They stay for a few days after that, letting Link have some time to bond with Reason and Season even if just as an 'Uncle'. He takes the girls out fishing and camping in the nearby woods for a night, telling them the story about the spooky live Guardians that used to prowl there, until he defeated them. They are very impressed and glad that the only Guardians around now are the deactivated ones... 

So then Link takes the two back home, and Rhondson has one last request of them before he goes. She says its okay if he's too busy since he's already done so much for them, but if he and Zelda had any plans to visit Gerudo territory, she wonders if Link can send a message home to her mother and sisters that she had her vevis after all, and not to worry about her, she's happy where she is. Link agrees and he and Zelda head off after giving Reason and Season two more big hugs each.

It turns out Zelda was wanting to check in with the Gerudo herself, since they were one of her closest allies once, and Link also needs to check in to let them know that the Thunder Helm is still safe, and ask if it's okay for him to continue to use it on loan for a few more years since Zelda senses they have another huge battle ahead of them.

So they head out to Gerudo Territory, and as they pass through the canyons Link notices Sesami with a small group of people. He's about to give him a stern talking to, but Sesami comes over first, asking him right away to give his old 'friends' another apology from him, and explaining that he's given up his old deceitful ways of showboating. He's accepted he's not a big strong hotshot and now that the monsters are almost all gone, he's just leading simple tour guides through the canyons, but he still feels bad about lying to that group. Link agrees to relay his message if he manages to see them again, and he and Zelda move on. 

They stop at the Bazaar before heading into Gerudo Town, and Link has to have a rather awkward talk with Zelda about why she doesn't need to buy an extra set of Gerudo vai clothes from Vilia because he's already collected it in every color... But Vilia isn't too bothered by losing a sale, she's just finally glad to get to share that meal with Link after all those years of waiting, and she doesn't mind that he's brought a princess as an extra companion for the meal. She explains over said meal in a hushed voice that she appreciates them calling her 'she' despite knowing the 'truth', and that she generally keeps it up around everyone except a few people -- His little sister Riju and a few other cousins that knew him since he was little. She explains that most of the time she goes to and from Gerudo town to sell and trade things (usually normal stuff like fruits and meat, selling Gerudo clothes is usually only to women and Link was actually a very rare exception), but also as a secret guard to make sure men aren't planning anything against his people. Sometimes when no one is looking, he'll slip on men's clothes and listen to the men talking among themselves when they think no women/Gerudo are listening. Vilia will then relay anything he heard them saying to his sisters, who will use the information to fortify their defenses and stop any silly or malicious plans. So this version of Vilia doesn't mind either pronoun, it just depends on the time and place and how well she knows you. Generally around the town/in public/around foreign vai, Vilia will keep on the disguise and saying 'she', but when in private quarters with his close friends and family, Vilia will at least take the face mask off and doesn't mind the 'he'. When in these quarters Riju and his cousins tend to just call him 'Vili'. 

So yeah Vilia goes with Link and Zelda to Gerudo Town and while there Vilia goes and catches up with his cousins the jewelers and Link and Zelda seek out Rhondson's mother and sisters and tell them the good news. They are overjoyed to hear the goddesses finally blessed Rhondson and will go visit the little ones soon, with no intention to pressure Rhondson to return, just to visit. 

Then Link and Zelda go to the palace to see Riju, who has grown up since Link last saw her. It's been several years since then, and she's now 21, almost as old as Zelda, who is (physically at least, stfu I know canon ages are off by a few years, I DON'T CARE OBVS THAT HAD TO BE CHANGED FOR THIS FIC) 22, and Link is physically and in age now 28. I imagine Riju isn't quite as buff as most Gerudo guards, her body type is probably closer to the jeweler's/scholar's, tall and still muscular but a bit more petite than most Gerudo.

So after explaining to Riju that Zelda's visions and dreams indicate a future battle, and that they would be grateful if she would allow them to borrow the Thunder Helm for a few more years, she of course agrees and wishes them luck with that future trial, but in the meantime beseeches them to stay in her town for at least a few days of festivities. They naturally agree, the first night is spent celebrating with Noble Pursuits all around at the bar, which now has no problem getting all the ice they need, and also now have no problem believing Link is old enough to drink. In Zelda's case they just believed her anyways because she's the princess, PFT lmao screw you Link, u can go battle Naboris but fuck off if you think u get a drink until there's at least one hair on your chin. right? XD

But thankfully that night they have no problem letting him get wasted with the girls, and he drunkenly tells everybody stories about his battles across Hyrule (Zelda: YOU BATTLED A LYNEL WHILE DRUNK!?! Link: LOL YEAH I COULDA TTLY DIED FROM THAT ONE HUH? MAN YOU WOULDA BEEN SCREWED IF THAT HAPPENED! Zelda: GIVE ME THAT BOTTLE--! The Gerudo: *NERVOUS SWEATING*) and the next day after sleeping it off, they go off with Riju and spend hours seal-surfing through the dunes which now free of monsters, is basically just a really hot playground now. After riding all day, they return after the sun goes down, and Riju invites Zelda to the Secluded Bathing Pool at the top of her palace where only she and invited female guests are allowed to go. Zelda asks if Link can come too, but he insists that it's fine if the two want a little time alone, and goes off to do some food shopping. 

So Riju takes Zelda to the pool, they begin washing each others hair and such, and Riju eventually shyly asks Zelda if she and Link are a thing. Zelda just as shyly replies that it's rather complicated, but that she and Link have no plans on getting married, at least. At that Riju kinda bursts out, "Whaaat?? But WHY, he's SO handso--" And then she realizes that she's says and blushes and clams up. Zelda laughs and can't help but tease her a bit, "Oho, so you think my Chosen Knight Link is handsome hmm Chief Riju~?" Riju is embarrassed but she admits that she's thought Link was incredibly beautiful since she first saw him. She knew she was too young to make a move, and that he had to move on anyways, so she just went back to her duties as chief. Over the years though, and after seeing at least a few more voe with her own eyes, Riju still thinks Link is the most handsome she's ever seen, and she's still so grateful for everything he's done, and she still gets such a thrill thinking about the time they rode through the sand surrounded by lightning chasing a giant mechanical god together... 

Then Riju makes a surprising confession/request... She says she's not sure if she's ready to have a vevi yet, but she wonders if Zelda would mind if she asked Link to be the father someday when she is. She says she can't imagine ever wanting to ask any other man but Link, but understands if he wants her to wait a few years anyways just in case, and that she of course plans to ask Link too, but she had make sure Zelda wasn't already sitting on that particular throne too, lmao, and also she got the feeling even if she wasn't, Link would still want to know if Zelda was okay with it. Zelda doesn't mind, but she admits that she's a little jealous that Link has gotten all her attention, and the respect of the other Gerudo. She remembers being Urbosa's favorite guest once but now she feels almost like a stranger. Of course she feels welcomed, but it's a whole new place and whole new faces. Riju insists that she's their guest of honor, and it's only because Link already established himself there years ago. 

Then Riju also shyly admits... That she's seen all kind of vai in Gerudo Town over the years, including Hylian vai... But that Zelda is without a doubt the most beautiful vai she's ever seen, too. Link might have been the first voe she ever saw besides her brother, but she definitely has a point of reference to say Zelda is beautiful, so the princess is very flattered. She admits in turn that though she was too old for her, Zelda always had a huge crush on Urbosa, and had a thing for Gerudo women in general, but she always knew her father (and the rest of the entire world pretty much) had always expected her to someday marry a man and give the kingdom of daughter. But then again again she muses, "What kingdom is left to give or leave anything to..."

Riju can see this really troubles her, but thankfully she has an idea. She tells Zelda she'll let her borrow a team of Gerudo guards, who will make the trip to Hyrule Castle and, now that it is free of nearly if not all the monsters and Guardians there before, they will begin the process of helping Zelda reclaim any historical artifacts that might be still intact. Zelda agrees that the desert is probably the best place to at least house the books from the royal library until a new library can be built somewhere, as the desert is dry and there is almost never rain. Riju agrees too and after finishing their bath, they go round up a group of guards willing and ready for a mission and send them off to the Castle. The Gorons in Gerudo town offer to help with the extra-heavy lifting, and after Link gives them all the tips to get in and out and avoid any traps, they head off.

After that they have a big meal together, with Riju and Zelda none-too-slyly sitting on both sides of Link, cuddling up close and offering bites off their own plates. At first Link is focused on the food but he quickly realizes something is up when Zelda mentioned that Riju invited them to spend the night at her palace instead of just staying at the inn again... But he's not about to piss off royalty times two by insisting on a massage from the Innkeeper instead of at least keeping their company, so he comes with them, at least to hear them out...

So then Riju and Zelda basically start putting the moves on Link by suddenly ignoring him and instead cuddling up with each other. Zelda mentions how much she's always loved fiery Gerudo hair, and Riju replies that she loves the color of Zelda's golden tresses too... But then briefly glances over to Link and gives him a wink. He was already heavily suspecting but now it's basically obvious. The ball is in his court, so to speak. The idea he's getting is basically, they're totally gonna do it with or without you, but you're welcome to join too, if you want. An exceedingly rare honor, he's aware, but he's also aware they've giving him a lil space to decide and not insisting either, just in case he has any reservations about anything. He knows Riju was much younger when he first came here, but its been several years since then and she's clearly now a powerful and respected chief for her own deeds, not just the help she got from Link that once. So he does hesitantly agree, but first requests to be able to 'slip into something more comfortable'...

The ladies agree and begin making out with each other while he goes off to the side to change, and comes back a moment with a set of voe clothes he got from Rhondson a while back, dyed golden yellow n looking like a golden god of battle~ x3 Riju and Zelda stop making out bc their jaws have fallen and they both promptly have a "WHAT ARE THOOOOOOOOOOOSE??" moment XDDD ("*Sniffsniff* Is that banana...?" "Amazing what you can use as dye, right?")

The ladies are most impressed and let him get in between them on the bed. Sorry Patricia Plushie, but Link needs the room... XD And lmao sorry Fyson but you officially no longer have one up on Link! Sorry, I know ppl were looking forward to this one but if I can't go into the flowery language, eh, there's not much point... But yeah basically everybody works a lotta mouth magic bc Riju is cool waiting until they get back from their BOTW2 battles before she takes on that kinda responsibility, and as a show of faith that they will come back, and that she believes in them. 

So after another few days of resting and revelry Zelda and Link head off again, the Thunder Helm still safe with them for a few more years on loan. They pass through the Bazaar, and the Gerudo Canyon Stable, and follow the path out through to canyons and over the bridge to Outskirt Stable. They are surprised to find even less people than usual at Outskirt, and a lot of noise seems to be coming from the coliseum. The attendant at Outskirt explains that since the monsters disappeared, people got together and decided to use the old coliseum as a giant marketplace for everyone to gather and trade and buy and sell to each other in one big festival that is to last for a few weeks, and luckily for them they just arrived a few days after it began, so they have plenty of time to see it and enjoy.

This is a pretty important moment for everyone bc its something totally new after all the destruction/near annihiliation. It's everyone who survived getting together to trade and do business like they haven't gotten to do freely in literally longer than most people know. The shops are all located against and under walls/ceilings so they don't get rained on if it starts up, but it's sunny while Link and Zelda are there. Innkeepers also have beds underneath the staircases just in case anyone needs a rest, and the rest of the people in the middle of the coliseum ground floor are playing instruments and dancing together. Link and Zelda join them and dance together for hours, then when they're tired of that they go around looking at all the wares and foodstuffs. Link encourages Zelda to spend all his rupees since he knows his sister and her husband have a whole bunch of the gemstones and golden rupees stolen from her castle hidden at their old lodge in Hebra, but even with her actively spending freely he's still got plenty of money bc everybody is giving them fantastic deals on whatever they want, of course, basically close to free but not literally free so as to not make them self-conscious. Like oh a Golden Bow for the lady? 5 rupees! XD

So while they're looking around Link spots some old friends -- Palme and Canolo are next to Flaxel and Prima from Hateno, and Grante from Tarrey Town and Oliff are there too. Prima and Flaxel are a couple, and they are renting beds together at the coliseum for the event, then plan to head back home. Canolo and Palme are also married and selling cakes, which Link and Zelda load up on. Oliff is selling some weapons he's collected over his travels and Grante is selling his armor, apparently the two met a short time ago, and Grante keeps making blushy faces at Oliff, who is wearing some of his armor and looks very dashing in it~

While Zelda tries every one of Canolo's yummy cakes, Link relays the message from Sesami, and the other reluctantly forgive him since he's changed his ways. Flaxel has no plans on going on another of his tours, but Palme and Canolo say they might try it again someday, if the monsters stay gone. Oliff says its unlikely for him, bc he plans on going back to Akkala with Grante after the festival. Then, once Zelda is completely full of cake, she and Link rent the fluffiest beds and have a nice nap together. 

When they wake they visit the rest of the shops and after they're completely stocked up on everything they need they head off. They tell Oliff's group they'll meet them back at Hateno when they return from this bazaar/festival in a few more days, as they'll be heading there before long too, after first stopping in Kakariko.

After that Link and Zelda head out following the path without getting bothered by any monsters, they make good time to Kakariko through the Bonooru's Stand entrance. When they come through Link notices right away that on the left side, the 20-something foot rock cliff that led to the hill overlooking the rest of the village has been drastically changed, cut into stone steps that lead up to a carved pathway, lined with a quaint gate that leads to a little home that's just been built there, overlooking the whole village. Impa and Paya are there, with a little blonde baby in Paya's arms, watching Yunobo and a few other Sheikah men till the soil in front of the new home so that a vegetable patch can be grown there soon.

Link thinks the work is amazing, but of course he's most interested to see the result of Paya's labors, the little blonde baby girl who isn't quite but almost a year old. He's told Paya named her Linka, a combination of their names together. She doesn't talk much yet obviously, but Link finds that incredibly relatable anyways~ He holds her a lot, though he also notices baby Linka also likes to be held by Yunobo, who apparently has been helping out with building Paya's house since he arrived. When Link announces that he had plans to accompany Impa and Paya and Linka to go see Purah in Hateno, Yunobo asks if he can come along too. Link says of course, though wonders why he's so eager to keep following them, but at first just chalks it up to Yunobo wanting to get out and see the world while there were no monsters around.

After spending a night together at the new house and sharing a meal with one another, Impa and Paya pack up well for the trip and head out with Link and Zelda and Yunobo. They travel for a short while until they make it just past the Fort Hateno gate, where Dr. Calip's house is. To Link's amazement, he finds Loone just outside of Calip's house, trying to hold back a little boy with red hair and blue eyes, about 3, from trying to climb a tree that has a bee's nest at the top, telling him he can't have honeyed apples for every meal. Link butts in, "Aww, but I love honeyed apples~" Which makes Loone go nutso for a sec that it's him. XD

When she's over the shock, Loone introduces Link to Moone, and explains that after they parted ways, she headed out to Hateno, but found herself having troubles towards the end of her pregnancy when she started getting esecially heavy, and the traveling started getting difficult. Dr Calip noticed her passing by and saw the state she was in, and asked her if she would like to use his bed for the birth, as he didn't think she would make it all the way to Hateno before it happened, and it would be too dangerous to chance a birth out in the wild. That plus the fact that Calip tells her he's a doctor gets Loone to agree, and thankfully it turns out he wasn't lying about that, as he knows how to assist with a birth and has several other useful medical skills besides his knowledge of ancient texts and technologies. Because of this, Loone feels especially safe around him, and because of their shared love of ancient things, she eventually starts developing a little crush on him too. After helping her give birth, Calip offers to let Loone recover for a while, and eventually, she asks if she can come back and stay with him after checking in with her parents in Hateno. 

Dr Calip addresses Link here, confessing that at his age he did in fact have a wife in Hateno, but that they were long since separated, years before Loone even got there. His wife simply had no interest in any of the ancient artifacts, and was resentful of how often he left to go study the relics, so eventually he moved and made a home closer to his passions and left his wife the house in Hateno. He was sometimes lonely but he thought it was for the best, and his wife never came to visit, so she clearly moved on. It wasn't until he met Link and later Loone that he realized that he had been at least a little lonely, but desired to have the companionship of those that shared his interests, too. So shortly after Loone came back from checking on her folks, Calip sent a letter with the next passing ingredient merchant to his wife in Hateno, explaining what happened and asking for an official split. She sends back word that she has no problem with it, and that's that. And Loone's son, by the by, was named Moone, because he just so happened to be born on the night of the blood moon, making it extra fortunate that Loone decided to give birth there with Calip instead of chancing the road. 

So the group spends a day camping out in his woods (Calip added an extra bed in his home for Loone and Moone but it's still not enough room for everyone) so Link and Zelda can play hide and seek with Moone in the trees, and Moone is being adorably cute with baby Linka, but it's not enough time for Link, and so he asks Loone if it would be okay with her if he asks Moone to come with him for the visit to Hateno, and he'll bring him right back to her afterwards. Loone trusts him, so she asks Moone if he can be brave enough to go without her for a few days and go on a short adventure with Link. He's a little hesitant, but the boy has both his mama's smarts and his father's courage, so he quickly agrees. 

So they all walk on towards Hateno, and just outside of the village gates, off to the side of the woods, Link notices a young couple having a picnic together, now that there's no beasts in the woods to sneak up on them it's an ideallic spot and a few other kids and couples are picnicing here and there too. But Link notices this couple, the man is the knight Nell that he saved in Akkala, and he's sitting with none other than Celessa. When they see him they of course rush over to greet him, both of them surprised to find the other has met Link before, and that both had their lives saved by him. After coming back from his voyage to the citadel ruins, Nell just happened to run into Celessa as she was coming back from her trip to the the Spring of Wisdom, and the two paired up perfectly. Thankfully for her Link made his way through first and slayed the lynel and lizalfos on the way and freed the cursed dragon before she got there, so all she had to worry about was putting on some warm clothes and snow boots. XD And yeah to say the least Celessa is beyond stoked to get to meet the actual Princess Zelda she's studied so much, and Nell is pretty mind-blown to find out just exactly who Link really is.

Now the group has gotten kinda big, so they split off in town, with Impa and Paya and Linka going off with Link and Zelda and Moone to visit Purah, while Celessa and Nell accompany Yunobo to check in and get some inn rooms with Prima and Flaxel, who just got back to their inn. Purah and Impa catch up in person for the first time in a long time, Impa joking that she's still shorter than her little sister. Paya is the only one surprised to see Purah, as she has exchanged letters but never got to see her before, and expected her to be especially old like her grandmother Impa, so lol yeah she's a BIT surprised that her grand-auntie is only a little bit 'older' than her own baby girl. XP 

Impa ends up staying the night at Purah's home, and Paya comes down the hill with Linka and she and Zelda take beds at Prima's inn, while Link takes Moone to spend the night with him at his own home. Moone asks him about all the stuff he has displayed there, and Link tells him all the stories about the Champions, shows them their weapons and their picture by his bed. Moone is very impressed and, over supper he tells Link, "You know... I felt like I knew you when I met you, even though I never saw you before." And that's how Link knows that Moone knows, even though he didn't officially tell him, Moone is an especially smart kid.

The next morning everyone goes outside and to their amazement snow is falling... And to their added amazement, especially Celessa's, it's because the dragon Naydra is sailing overhead, frost falling off her scales. She and Nell and Zelda and Linka and Moone are all amazed by the sight, but Paya and Yunobo are both scared by the dragon, even though she means no harm, Paya lets out a small cry and then falls into Yunobo's arms, who instinctively hugs her and puts up Daruk's protection around them. He and Paya then blush at each other, d'aww~

After the snow has fallen, everybody uses the opportunity to make snow sculptures, have snow-ball fights, and go ice-fishing, then they end the day with hot apple cider to warm them back up~

After all the fun and food goes on for nearly a week, Link's group starts heading back. They drop Moone back off with Loone, promising him that although it might take a long time, that they'll try their best to come back and visit him again someday, and in the meantime at least Paya and Loone agree to let Linka and Moone meet up for playdates now and again, since they live close enough for a visit with the monsters gone. He and Link and Linka have a tearful goodbye, but Moone missed his mom too, so he stays. Then Link takes Impa and Paya and Linka back to Kakariko, where he then asks Yunobo if he plans to go back home to Goron City yet. Yunobo agrees at first... But then he asks Paya really nervously if it's okay for him to come back and visit her and check on how Linka is doing once in a while. She just as nervously agrees, and tells him she'd really love to see him again, which leaves them both blushing~

After giving their last kisses to baby Linka, Link and Zelda head out again, this time with the two of them agreeing to visit Zora territory. Link is a little surprised that Sidon didn't search him out after the great battle, but it turns out it was because shortly after it concluded Sidon's mate's 3 eggs hatched, and he's been quite busy with them since then, as unlike Hylian babies, Zora's young go straight to swimming after they've left the egg. The first one that hatched was from Tula and was a girl, so Sidon named her Mipha, after his late sister (or Mipha-Grace to distinguish her from the original Mipha). The second was a boy and he was named after Link and Sidon both, so his name is Linkon (the mother Tona wanted to name him Sidon and Sidon wanted to name him Link, so they compromised XD). The last is the daughter of Torfeau, and she was named based on her mother, so her name is Torfinnia. Mipha-Grace and Linkon are red like Sidon and Tona and Tula. Torfinnia came out bluish-gray like her mother.

So the visit starts out all cute, with Link showing Sidon pictures of his own children he took along the way so he could remember them later, the two of them having a totally manly cry over the fact that they're both dads, with Sidon straight up bawling while Link surpresses his sniffles... XD;; 

But yeah aaaaafter that Link can't help but notice that Zelda is glancing over at Sidon a lot, and so he asks Sidon in secret off to the side a little later, like hey man, are the waifus the jealous types now that there's kids or they still cool with you going off for a few hours on your own? Because it turns out Link has a special favor to ask of Sidon and his double endowments... BC even though Zelda told Link they can't be completely, well, 'complete', bc they can't chance the pregnancy with their future still uncertain and dangerous, she's mentioned to Link that she wishes they could... So Link asks Sidon if Zelda might maybe be his type too, and if so, if he wouldn't mind taking her with them back to his private waterbed chamber?

Sidon is DEEEFINITELY flustered lol but at the same time TOTALLY up for it, just wondering how the hell he managed to get so ridiculously lucky... XD Especially when they get there and he sees Link whisper to Zelda, and the two of them then change into Gerudo outfits together. This time with Link in a light blue one and Zelda in pink~

And eeeerm yeah won't go into TOO much detail buuuut what the hell I'll go into at least a few XDDD At first Link encourages Sidon to give his lady the business while he watches, though I wouldn't say Link is anything like a 'cuck' just because he's not the one on Zelda, he just wants to make sure she's definitely been pleased before he joins in, but he absolutely plans to join in~ Just first, to watch for at least a few minutes while Sidon at first goes slow with Zelda, pleasing her with one of his members at a time, then briefly with both of them at once... Buuut neither Link or Zelda can take that for too long, and Link makes his way into the fray and requests that he get a share of Sidon's scaly sausage~ XD! So YEAH then Sidon's got one in both of them, with Link and Zelda back to back, writhing with each other, both getting shared by the same noble prince at once, Zelda giving Link a hand and Link giving her one too until they all come together~ 

After everybody comes back down from that waterfall ride, they go back to Zora's Domain together and have fishy family fun swimming around and dancing and telling tales for days until Zelda eventually has a dark dream telling her that destiny is waiting for them... Sidon of course offers to help them, but they refuse to let him take the chance of not coming home to his hatchlings. Sidon makes them promise to be careful and support each other, to always stick together...

So at this point there's only one thing left -- Though I think Zelda also coulda gotten her hair cut in Gerudo Town by a stylist there, or maybe by Paya or something, it seems also a fitting end to have Link himself cut it as is popular. He could maybe get worried about the upcoming battles while they're getting their final supplies ready, and suggest that shorter hair is less dangerous, and Zelda agrees. It would then seem fitting for Link to use the Master Sword itself to cut her locks, symbolic of something or another or whatever, and yadda yadda off to their next adventure and whatever that entails~ XD

Aaaaand I think ASSUMING Link and Zelda both survive BOTW2 canonically PFT *CROSSES FINGERS, LIKE, ALL THE FINGERS...* after they come back from that, eventually Link would come back and give Riju that vevi... Aaaand maybe Zelda too, but they wouldn't get married still. Zelda would become queen by herself after a restoration of her castle and Link would remain her knight, but would not become king, at least not officially, but he serves as a sort of shadow ruler to Zelda while gladly giving her all the outward power and glory. I'm thinking they're in a long-distance relationship still with both Sidon and Riju, visiting each other's palaces here and there and visiting all the kids too, again, hopefully if BOTW2 doesn't screw us all~ 

Hope you guys liked these last extra details! Please kudo/comment if you liked the fic! Sorry again that I don't got the time but man if wishes were fishes we'd all have food! XD;;;


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